Gayathri Krishnan: Rockstar Shit, Genre-Bending R&B, and Manifesting Dreams

Gayathri Krishnan is an artist on the rise hailing from the City of Angels who is capturing the attention of audiences everywhere with her luscious, captivating voice and her unique approach to the artistry of R&B. Her music refuses to be labeled–without fail, she finds ways to genre-bend music by meshing R&B with influences stemming from Indian Carnatic, folk, and neo-soul sounds. When considering all of Krishnan’s influences and stylistic choices, coupled with her discography, it is clear that she is unafraid to venture out into other genres not commonly heard within the Western music space. Her EPs Create to Express and Arunachala work as a window into her life and are reflections of the inspirations, culture, and environment Krishnan is inspired by. Berkeley B-Side met with Krishnan as we prepared to feature her on the Ones to Watch Wednesday series where we talked about her inspirations, influences, new releases, and how her culture weaves its way throughout her music.

Krishnan met with me over Zoom on what I remember as the one of the first bright Saturdays we have had in Berkeley this year. It was almost as if the weather had decided to match the beautiful and bright vibe that comes with listening to Krishnan’s music. When both of us got settled for the interview, Krishnan gleefully mentioned that the night before she had just had her first official release party for her recently released single “F**ck Shit!” Following some warm smiles and quick introductions, we began talking about how she got started with music and how growing up in an encouraging environment, to which she credits her parents, shaped how she expresses herself creatively.

She began dabbling in the art of music at the age of four. Her parents had enrolled her in Carnatic music lessons as well as Bharatanatyam lessons meaning she embraced the study of South Asian art expressions from a very early age. She commented that the two art forms gelled together, and from those experiences she learned how music and dance work together. Krishnan continued to pursue music in her childhood by exploring other musical instruments like the viola and clarinet, but it was ultimately in sixth grade when she realized her instrument of choice was her voice. In the sixth grade Krishnan had joined her school’s choir class because she claimed she was “really bad at playing instruments.” The adjustment from instruments to singing in the choir was where she found her voice, talent, and passion.

Gayathri Krishnan: In the chamber choir we had pop music shows. It was a showcase where you could do any type of music that you wanted, that was appropriate, and I would do my original music or R&B/pop music and that’s kind of how I got into the original songwriting. So it started from Carnatic singing lessons to choral music and then to pop and R&B. Now I started learning Carnatic music again so it’s all tied in together.

Her journey in choosing to create music was not only influenced by her technical education, but also through inspirations from her childhood that helped her manifest the life of her dreams. Her parents were supportive of her art and would create that sanctuary necessary for Gayathri to both explore what it meant to be an artist and the messages she wanted to convey through her music.

Gayathri Krishnan: I think one of the biggest blessings I had growing up was a safe space to just be my weird self. My dad always was singing, always had a CD or a cassette or something playing. My mom would always have chants and prayer songs playing on the way to school so I was literally surrounded. I couldn’t escape music basically and I think that definitely influenced me. I do feel I have a natural inclination to create and want to express myself through this like medium of my voice and my body through dance but my environment definitely encouraged that seed in me, and really thanks to my parents for that.

Following my questions about how Krishnan got her start within music, the conversation flowed into asking about the time she knew she wanted to be an artist and made the decision to devote her time and energy into creating music.

Gayathri Krishnan: I think the a-ha moment was during the pandemic when I created my EP Create to Express. I was like I have something to say and I know it can be impactful and I know I can do this. I would say that’s the most confident I’ve been in my artistry ever and yeah I think that project was like okay I got this, I can do this.

2020 may have been the year of revelations for Gayathri but she later tells me about a mantra she’s lived by that made it seem as if the creation of music were written in the stars as her destiny.

Gayathri Krishnan: I will say I’ve always said the phrase rockstar shit. I have this little guitar tattoo that I got when I was 18 in high school. And so I feel like I knew in high school I wanted to do [music].

The guitar tattoo on her left forearm is a physical expression of her natural inclination to express her emotions through music. And like any tattoo with a meaning behind it, it serves as a representation of the impact the item it signifies, music, has had on her life.

Following the reveal of her tattoo, I wanted to ask more about Krishnan’s music itself. When I asked about her musical influences and the way they make themselves present throughout her discography, she acknowledged Carnatic composers, Sid Sriram, L. Subramanium, and Rosalia as having inspired the way she approaches her music. Krishnan cites the way Carnatic composers write and structure their music, the way Sid Sriram incorporates Carnatic riffs and vocal styles, the tear-jerking passion with which L. Subramanium plays, and the way Rosalia is able to seamlessly integrate her cultural music (flamenco) within pop, as the reason why she is inspired by these individuals. The impact of these sources of inspiration on Krishnan’s music is apparent in the way she is passionately able to incorporate her own cultural influences into her performances.

Though Krishnan has proven her mastery of implementing cultural aspects originating from Carnatic music within her own art, she clarified that she is not going into her creative process with the intention of making fusion music but rather the developed music is a product of her vast musical knowledge coming to fruition in the music flowing out of her.

Gayathri Krishnan: I think with my first project Create to Express, and even before that, in “Illusion,” I used swaras and notes from Carnatic music in the songs. I don’t think I was learning Carnatic music to make fusion music, if that makes sense. Like, I think I just knew what I knew. And I was like, how can I integrate this knowledge into something that I know now? And I think it’s a constant exploration for me, I don’t sit there and actively go, okay, so how can I take this form and blend it into this form, I think it’s almost a language within me. And I’m constantly pulling from it. I mean I have some songs that I don’t even sing anything, Carnatic in it, like “444.” But it’s still like the vocal style that I use.

Krishnan’s ability to transcend the definition of the R&B genre is what makes listening to her music different from experiencing the creative expressions of other artists. I’ve learned that it does have its drawbacks though after asking Krishnan about things she loves and hates about implementing influences from her culture within the music. Krishnan has found that people try to confine her art to simply Carnatic R&B music when her projects reflect a variety of sounds and inspirations. On the flip side, she’s proud to carve her own path within the music space to create sounds that have not been explored often.

Gayathri Krishnan: I wouldn’t say I hate anything but I feel like sometimes people might put me in a box of “Oh, like that’s Carnatic R&B,” when that’s not really what I’m trying to do. I think I know my own intentions and I’ve tried not to pay attention to what people say about my music. And what I love is that I feel like I’m creating stuff that I’m hearing for the first time, other than Sid, and different Indian fusion bands and stuff. I feel like it’s a pretty new sound and a pretty new approach.

As we drew the interview to a close, I asked Krishnan about her newest releases and what her fans should expect in the future.. Though she confirmed that her latest release of singles are not in anticipation of a new project release, she offered a peek behind the curtain about the inspirations for her latest song releases – “you mean something to me” and “F**ck Shit!”- as well as the next single she has lined up titled “Low Low.”

Gayathri Krishnan: “you mean something to me” is about love. It can be any type of love, but it was inspired by queer love. “F**K SHIT!” is something that was really out of my comfort zone. But I love that song. I just released it yesterday. That is about anger and rage and calling someone out. Something that I usually don’t do. So that was really cool. The next song or single that I have is called “Low Low.” And it’s, again, experiencing queer love, but almost like in a playboy or playgirl way. And it’s more like cheeky and fun.

Berkeley B-Side is excited to have Gayathri Krishnan as our On the Rise artist for our Ones to Watch series. We look forward to seeing her growth as an artist and wait in anticipation for all of her new releases. If you’re a fan of music that will make you feel like you are levitating, Gayathri Krishnan’s music is for you. Check out her discography, available on all streaming platforms now.