This week’s artist of the Forgotten and the Unknown is slightly unusual, considering she’s been on the rise this year. Listeners may recognize her voice from her hit single “Sailor Song”, but Gigi Perez’s is still relatively unknown in the music industry. At fifteen years old, she began writing music in 2015 and released music in 2018 as a member of a small dream pop band called Wendy Lane. In high school, Perez taught herself how to play guitar and piano, and how to sing. These skills would help her be accepted into Berklee College of Music, known for being the largest college of contemporary music in the world. However, she would later leave due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020 tragedy struck Perez when her older sister Celene passed away shortly after Perez’s partner broke up with her. Posting reels on TikTok helped her grieve and pass the time as a way to cope with her losses. She first went viral on the app in 2021 for her songs “Celene” and “Sometimes (Backwood).” her music’s popularity would get her signed with Interscope Records the same year.
In 2023, she released her first EP “How To Catch A Falling Knife” alongside a single called “Kill For Me.” In July of this year, Perez released her most popular song to date, “Sailor Song,” a queer love song that blew up online, peaking on music charts around the world. She would also switch from Interscope Records to Island Records in 2024. Perez’s identity as a lesbian has become an integral part of her music, as seen in tracks like “Sailor Song” and “Sometimes (Backwood),” having WLW-focused lyrics.
How To Catch A Falling Knife (2023) + Hit Singles:
“How To Catch A Falling Knife” is Gigi Perez’s first compiled collection of songs. The EP spans eight tracks with a run time of around 34 minutes. The record’s title comes from the stock market term, “Never try to catch a falling knife.” which is an expression for the continuous falling of stocks. The EP is one of grief, relating Perez’s emotions after the death of her sister and the loss of her partner. She digs deep into the questions surrounding grief and winds a story around the ballad-like lyrics seen in her music. Gigi Perez’s rough deep, almost androgynous voice is a highlight to not just this record but her music in general. Her ability to weave in and out of deep and airy vocal tones between thought-provoking lyrics is the highlight of this EP. Since Perez is an upcoming star, this week’s column will be slightly different since she has not yet released an album, I decided to feature additional songs, three songs off of her EP and three of her hit singles.
Kill For You:
Perez’s androgynous voice is a highlight of this track. Accompanied by upbeat and preppy guitar rifts in the background, the mix of the two elements creates a fascinating song. The lyrics are slightly darker, describing a complex relationship between two people, where one person would go to extreme lengths for the other, even killing for them, referring to the title of the track. The song almost serves as a warning of the potential dangers relationships like this can have. To me as the song escalates in sound and intensity so does the narrator’s behavior in the track, creating a unique parallel that Perez has incorporated into this song so well.
The Man:
The soft voice of Perez leads you into “The Man” soothingly, the layered vocals creating a folk sound effect. Like most of Perez’s music, it’s a song that relies more on vocals than an accompanying instrumental. The lyrics of this song are quite somber, with Perez touching on how queer relationships are treated differently than heterosexual relationships, creating misunderstandings between partners and strangers alike.
Sally:
“Sally” embodies the Americana style perfectly in this track. Country-like guitar chords and harsh guitar beats create an instrumental feeling that rivals that of Perez’s powerful vocals. Perez talked about the song on her social media accounts in 2023, revealing that Sally was the first girl Perez ever fell in love with. She wanted the song to translate the feelings of a first queer crush and the fear that comes with it. “Sally” is the standout track in this EP, the instrumentals and vocals create a beautiful sound that won’t be leaving your ears for a while.
Fable (Single):
“Fable” almost feels like a continuation of the “Sailor Song” era. Maybe it’s the childish drawings on the single’s covers or that it was her most recent single to come out since “Sailor Song’s” release. The song is dedicated to Perez’s older sister Celene who passed away in 2020. The song takes you through the five stages of grief in four minutes. Her lyric, “capital loss” strikes hard as you watch the song build up to this one lyric, for her to deliver a heart-wrenching chord that feels like the clutch of desperation in your chest. The line is the climax before the song slows, into a somber note with auto recordings of Perez’s childhood with her sisters playing in the background. The song ends with a voice message Celene left for Perez wishing her luck on performance and the lyrics “stars blink like my sister’s eyes” reveal her deep love for her sister, the song being the perfect way to honor her memory.
Sailor Song (Single):
“Sailor Song” is Perez’s top-charting song and one of her finest. A romantic ballad about a relationship with a woman Perez says, “looks just like Anne Hathaway,” She first came up with the lyrics in the shower thinking about a quick infatuation. The song was released on July 6, 2024, and it had blown up on almost every social media platform by August. The song faced backlash from Christian communities for the lyrics, “I don’t believe in God/ But I believe that you’re my savior.” In response to complaints, Perez pushed back on her TikTok saying that her songwriting was not a democracy and not open to change. Many people upon first listening believed that Perez was a male because of her deep voice; however, that makes her music so unique with “Sailor Song” no different. Her lyrics feel like poetry, an unspoken love between two people that we as the listeners are now privy to.
Sometimes (Backwood):
“Sometimes (Backwood)” is a song that feels like a cold fall night. Perez’s range in this track is impressive. Her rough voice can reach high pitches, making the song feel like a rollercoaster. The lyrics tell the story of a troubled relationship, with the narrator making possessive comments towards their partner in the opening lines. The second verse reveals that the speaker has been hurt in the past by their partner, with the chorus, “Sometimes, I wonder” shows the speaker’s turmoil of letting go. The song’s slightly more adult lyrics give the track an intimate feeling. The vocals are the highlight of this song, accompanied by a light airy guitar, it’s a great song to get you into your feels late in the night.
Perez is currently on a roll after her success with “Sailor Song” and “Fable.” She is currently touring with famous queer artist Girl In Red and will begin her first headline tour across the US and Europe in 2025. With so much potential, I am sure that we can expect much more from Gigi Perez in the future.
