Hi, I’m GINGE. I’m based in The Netherlands and I write and sing songs that are a mixture of soul, pop and RnB. I grew up with a dad blasting Toto and Chaka Khan at home and a mom loudly singing along to Adele in the car. This brought about the interesting mix-up of music I’m interested in nowadays.
Going through puberty, I mostly enjoyed music by Katy Perry, Natasha Bedingfield, P!nk and the Sugababes. I was passionate about acting and theatre and singing was much more of a thing that came along once in a blue moon. I did take part in the regular school music nights but was much too busy chasing the dreaming of becoming an actress.
Turning 21, I started doing a theater course where I got to sing a little more and my voice got more attention. I started filming covers which eventually led me to the people that I now make music with. Simultaneously I grew more familiar with my own taste in music and the person I was becoming. I started writing songs, which helped me figure myself out even more.
In 2021 I released my debut EP Belly, a soulful take on emotions I feel in my tummy. Last month I birthed the new EP Bummer, a rather catchy follow-up on how I cope with disappointment and turn them into parties, laughter and joy.
Bummer was made in Leeuwarden, a city in the north where I grew up and lived until my 21st. When I started out making music, I was already living in Utrecht, a more central city, so it was fun to travel back from time to time and discover more of the scene back home.
I made this is EP with Lake Woozoo, whom I did one single (“Whispers”) with beforehand. Going back to where I grew up subconsciously influenced the songs a lot, I think, since it’s a much more poppy EP than the first one.
The EP opens with an interlude on the topic of feeling like a bummer yourself. The lyrics came about when I was feeling out of luck in love and kept reliving memories on how I coped with romantic love before, thinking they’d run back to me when I just should’ve been clearer on what I felt and needed.
I think I inflicted quite some pain on myself and ran away from the thought that maybe I was the culprit instead of blaming it on someone or something else.
After the interlude, Bummer takes a deep dive into what it feels like when I do feel good (“Hedonism”) and when an adventure of love does work out (“Take My Picture”) even if it’s only for a night. On “2nd Floor”, we return to a more doubtful side.
It’s about me falling for someone whom I think I shouldn’t crush on. Cause what if I mess it up? Well, what if it works out? But before giving myself a clear answer, I turn to coming back to the point of messing it up on “Just In Case”.
I’m happy to say that I no longer feel as desperate as I did writing that song. I put someone on a pedestal and so badly wanted some recognition. Sometimes it means so much to be seen by someone while you know it’s gonna be toxic in the long run.
In “Jewels In The Night”, I try to drown my sorrow with booze and turn the drain that daily life sometimes can bring into a shimmering discoball.
Sadly that just won’t always work. So am I there to enjoy myself or am I just trying to get out of that FOMO feeling? Bummer ends on a happy note with “Get It Right” to set the mood and get out of all the bummers and turn to new adventures instead.
We made this EP during the pandemic, which means a lot of the more up-tempo and party-type songs were made while the clubs and bars were closed. These songs really helped me recall what life is about and gave me hope.
After all, listening to music can make you relive memories or be eager for new ones. I listened to a lot of Remi Wolf songs in this phase. I like the way she makes these heavily produced songs that can be fun and sad at the same time, like “Street You Live On”. I’m a big fan of her energy and weirdness.
I just ended a mini-tour with my new EP and was so happy to perform live again and see how the people experience these songs in real-time. I can’t wait to take this EP to festivals and I’m curious for what I’ll be making next.
For now I think I’m gonna enjoy making new material from scratch and taking deep dives into my brain to translate it into lyrics again.
You can listen to Bummer below or on any streaming service you like 🙂
Love, GINGE
Words by GINGE // Follow her on Instagram
