Ren Genevieve On Finding Her Music Community At NYU And Her Newest Single ‘forts’

We have had her newest single on repeat!

If you haven’t heard of Ren Genevieve, then you are truly missing out. A singer-songwriter with unbelievable talent, her November release ‘forts’ truly stands out as one of the best songs we’ve heard all year.

We had the absolute pleasure of speaking with Ren about her songwriting process, Broadway, and more!

When did you first realize that you wanted to pursue a career in music?

R: “I have always really loved to sing! From the time I could talk, I was singing everywhere. When I was really little, around like 2, whenever I saw a microphone I thought it was placed there for me to sing, and would burst into song. My parents really supported my love of music, and so I started voice lessons when I was five. I also would do singing competitions. By the time I was five, I knew I wanted to pursue a career in music. The more I was exposed to performing and singing and the more I learned about music, the more I wanted to do it.”

Who would you credit as some of your biggest music inspirations?

R: “Some of my biggest music inspirations are Joni Mitchell, Mariah Carey, Beyoncé, Miley Cyrus,
Taylor Swift, and Ariana Grande.”

Can you tell us more about your amazing new single “forts” and how it came to be?

R: “Before I wrote “forts,” I was thinking a lot about growing up. Even when you grow up with people, their perspective on childhood experiences can be vastly different from your own. I was processing a lot of different things related to that idea around the time that I wrote “forts,” so it’s inspired by a compilation of childhood experiences told from my perspective. The concept for forts came from a conversation in which I asked someone to build a fort, and they said “no it’s too messy.” When we were little, we loved to build forts. That moment felt very symbolic of the end of childhood for me, which inspired the concept of the song.”

Do you set aside time for songwriting sessions, or do you let your music ideas come naturally?

R: “I do a bit of both. I’m constantly writing. I do naturally have ideas for lyrics daily, and I write them down in my notes app and sing them into voice notes. But, I also like to structure time daily, where possible, or a few times a week in which I’m having a songwriting session.”

How would you personally describe the music scene in New York City?

R: “The music scene in New York City is really vibrant. You can find so many incredible artists doing beautiful work in almost any style. It’s so cool!”

You studied at NYU! Would you encourage aspiring music artists to go to college?

R: “Yes! If that’s possible, I would really encourage it. I recognize that it’s not for everyone, and not everyone has the same experience. My favorite thing about NYU was being in a community with artists. We were all so unique! We had so many different influences, and I learned so much by being in community with them and my professors, who are also artists and had vast experience across a variety of artistic mediums. My classmates and professors encouraged me and pushed me to be the best artist I could be at the time. That community is so important! It’s really difficult to find, and I believe that it is absolutely something that artists need. I also think that the structure of college assignments forces you to do things that you don’t necessarily want to do, or that you don’t think you can do, which stretches you as an artist and expands your realm of possibility.”

NYC is home to Broadway! Could you see yourself doing professional musical theater work in the future?

R: “Absolutely! My background is in musical theatre. I am 1000% a theatre kid. Ha! I would love to do professional musical theatre work in the future! I still audition. I really do enjoy it, and whenever I go in my goal is to be prepared and have fun so I can feel good about the work I’m doing in the room. It is a great opportunity to be seen (if you can get seen), and to perform in front of people. It’s like my own 30-second show! Ha! So, yes I would love to perform on Broadway!”

Where can we follow your amazing journey?

R: “You can check out my music on your preferred streaming platform, and follow me on TikTok and Instagram @rengenevieve. Thank you so much for interviewing me!”

Make sure to stream ‘forts’, available now on all music platforms!

Je’Kayla Crawford– Founder and Director– Je’Kayla has been a journalist for years and decided to start a publication of her own, New Scene Magazine, back in October 2020. When not helping her team and working on their print issues, you can find her watching a movie on Netflix or baking using a viral TikTok recipe.