Maggie Lindemann spent her early career being seen before she was fully understood—a familiar condition for artists who come of age in the glass house we call the internet. Introduced to many in 2016 through her viral track “Pretty Girl,” the Texas-born talent was thrown to the wolves in an industry fueled by scrutiny before she had a chance to discover herself.
Rather than disowning her past, Lindemann reoriented her relationship to it, allowing growth and change without insisting on reinvention. On i feel everything , she moves with greater intention, trading surface-level perception for emotional range, discipline, and a clearer sense of authorship over her own work.
For Lindemann, to feel everything is to be present. Recently settled in Los Angeles, fresh off the album’s release and preparing for a headlining tour, she reflects on the year she’s had while charting her sights forward. Releasing music independently through her label and fashion imprint, SWIXXZ, she now controls both the means and the message, building a creative ecosystem that reflects who she is rather than who she’s expected to be.
You’re fresh off the release of your new album, i feel everything, and preparing for a headlining tour. Where are you right now— literally and mentally? What’s happening in the world of Maggie Lindemann?
I’m at home in LA, just trying to settle down. Life is pretty good right now. I feel like I had one of the weirdest years of my life, but also one of the best. Now that the year is kind of ending and things are settling down again, I’m in a good place.
When everything is full-on—recording, preparing for tour, running your businesses—where do you go to decompress?
I play a lot of video games. I’ve always enjoyed that. It kind of takes me out of the real world, and I get lost in my computer for a couple of hours. I’ve also been reading a lot lately, which has been really nice.
I do. Honestly, coming home at the end of the day, turning on all my vibey lights, watching TV, and just being in my comfort space is where I like to go.
How long have you been living with these songs on the album?
I started working on this album at the top of last year, maybe around March. So, for about a year. It doesn’t seem that long, but this process felt so much longer because of how many sessions I had while recording it.
What does your songwriting process usually look like?
I usually write everything myself. For this album, I collaborated with other writers, as opposed to my last project, which I did on my own. I usually go into the studio with my producer to work on a song I’ve been writing, and we start building beats, doing melody passes, and working through the lyrics.
How do you decide what makes the final tracklist, and when do you know an album is finished?
There are so many songs that didn’t make the album—I can’t even tell you how many. I usually know pretty quickly whether I like a song. Even while I’m recording it in the studio, I’ll know if it’s not right. Sometimes there are songs that sit in a weird in-between space that are harder to cut. The tracklist is actually what takes me the longest in the album-making process. I’m really picky about the order of the songs and how they play into one another.
“I’m always learning new things about myself and my music. I think it’s just like anyone growing up. You learn so much, and you change. I’m a whole different person than I was when I first started.”
When you start making an album, do you begin with a concept in mind?
Yes and no. I’ll just be writing about what I’m actually going through in my life, and then I’ll recognize a common theme and start to follow that. With this project, I actually started with a whole different idea, and then it evolved into what you hear now. I like having a rough direction, but it always changes based on what I’m actually going through.
On your website, you pay homage to influences like Lana Del Rey, XXXTentacion, Kurt Cobain, Hayley Williams, and even Serena Williams. What do those people represent for you?
I find inspiration in a lot of different places—style, someone’s drive, mindset, aesthetics, brands. It really depends. With musical influences, I’m always moved by melody, fashion, stage presence, and the way they perform. I love athletes for the drive that wakes them up every morning. It’s really inspiring.
Who would you say are your strongest musical influences?
My all-time favorite is Lana Del Rey. I’m super inspired by her artistic career, creativity, music videos, stylistic choices, and how she paved the way for a completely new sound. I just think she’s the coolest. Amy Lee is also a huge one for me. I’m obsessed with her melodies and her voice. Her fashion, the long black hair—all of that is super inspiring to me.
Imogen Heap is also a major influence for you. What draws you to her work?
I just love her harmonies and the vocal effects she uses. I love vocoders, and she does those gloves that change your voice depending on how you move your hands. I don’t even know what they’re called, but I always found that so insane and interesting. Her voice is just so different and unique. You always know it’s her when you hear a song, and I think that’s a really special thing.
You blend genres seamlessly. From your early Lana Del Rey–inspired tracks to the heavier, metal-leaning sounds on your later releases, you seem to land in a sweet spot on I feel everything. Where does that love for blending genres come from?
I listen to so many different genres, and I don’t always want to make the same kind of song. I don’t always want to make a metal song. I don’t always want to make pop-punk. I don’t always want to be pop. I think XXXTentacion did that really well, and that inspired me a lot. I was also really obsessed with how Lil Wayne was rapping over guitars and drums. I loved that album. As a human, you have so many different moods, and it feels normal to want to express yourself in all those different ways.
As you’ve entered this second chapter of your career, your creative direction leans into darker themes and imagery. What draws you there?
People always ask me if I consider myself emo, and it’s funny because I’m actually really bubbly and happy all the time. But I find a lot of beauty in darker things. I love nu-metal, gothic architecture, and gothic horror. There’s a beautiful sadness to it. I grew up drawn to darker characters. I loved Tim Burton movies and villains. I think I just always found those stories more intriguing, and now I try to borrow from that.
Were you into emo bands growing up—Fall Out Boy, Panic! at the Disco?
Yeah, I was really into it in middle school, and even a little bit in elementary school. My parents raised me on rock music—not pop-punk, but more nu-metal and alternative. My dad loves alternative music. He was really into bands like The 1975 and Cage the Elephant, all that stuff. My mom was really big into the heavier side. She really liked Disturbed, Nirvana, and that more Slipknot-heavy side. So I grew up on a lot of rock music. Then, when I started to kind of become my own person, I got really into bands like My Chemical Romance, Sleeping With Sirens, and Bring Me the Horizon. I was really into that. Then, as I got older, I started venturing out more into alternative music— Evanescence, Portishead, Massive Attack. It was still darker, still emotional, but it was venturing out of metal and pop-punk and more into the alternative scene.
This is your third release on your self-owned label, SWIXXZ. What does ownership mean to you as an independent artist?
Being able to own your own work and be your own boss is really important. When I was on a major label, I didn’t feel like I had creative control, and that’s where I flourish the most—making the songs, creating a world, thinking about visuals. I like to be involved in every step of the process. Being with a distribution team allows me to be myself while still supporting what I create. It’s been such a game-changer.
Do you think your background on social media helped shape how you think about building a brand as an artist?
I think it has. I grew up on Tumblr, which was really a creative outlet for me. I loved playing with Photoshop and making things. Looking back, they were horrible, but I loved the creative journey. That’s always been important to me.
You released your first single at 16. How do you think you’ve evolved after navigating the industry from such a young age?
It’s been crazy. I mean, 11 years is a long time, so I definitely feel like I’ve grown a lot. I’ve really discovered who I am. It’s been a learning process. I’m always learning new things about myself and my music. I think it’s just like anyone growing up. You learn so much, and you change. I’m a whole different person than I was when I first started.
We head on tour in February. We just locked in the set list, and now we’re figuring out the stage and some fun stuff I want to do behind the scenes. I really want to do fun vlogs and content while we’re on the road. We’re also figuring out clothes and my stage outfits—just getting everything dialed in. I’m back in the gym. I’m back to eating healthy, which is not my favorite part. I hate having to eat really healthy, but I’m fully locked in right now.
You leaned more into collaboration on this album. The single “2022,” featuring Julia Wolf, stood out for me. Did you record that together in the studio?
Yeah, we actually did. That was one of the very rare occasions where I got to work with someone in the studio. I definitely prefer working in that shared space and being able to do everything in one room. I also just love working with Julia. She’s so fun, and I feel like we have a lot of similarities in the way we work, which makes it fun. It feels like working with the other half of your brain or something. It just flows so naturally.
