Imposter: A chat with Miss Grit

Margaret Sohn, otherwise known as Miss Grit, a Korean-American and East Coast based musician, explores the insecurities one feels in their early 20s as they navigate young adulthood. In their most recent EP “Imposter,” the moody electronic rock tones of their work seem to perfectly emulate the frustrations and sadness surrounding the idea of imposter syndrome.  With influences of the likes of St. Vincent, one cannot deny that Miss Grit’s songs, off her Imposter EP, emulate the thought process and emotions one feels surrounding self doubt. Looking at “Blonde,” which begins with a muted mellow beat that crescendos to a breaking point leaving the last 30 seconds of the song to reconcile the emotional journey that the listener has experienced. 

That is what makes Miss Grit’s music so unique, as it moodily embodies your emotions and takes you along the journey of how to process and work through them, leaving you with new knowledge about yourself. 

Enjoy this phone chat with Margaret Sohn, as they give us a peek into how their mind and music work together to create Miss Grit.     

What is the first memory that was really telling and proved you were passionate about music?

“It’s hard to pick out one, I just have early memories of my parents playing a lot of music around me and my sisters. My dad would play Talking Heads and the CUre. My mom would play a lot of Fiona Apple, so I was kind of always surrounded by music even though my parents weren’t musicians. But, they definitely encouraged that kind of atmosphere. Also, when we were little he bought me and my sisters our first recording set up, so that was also one of my first memories of audio engineering.”

What are some of the major artists that really inspire you now? And how has it changed over time? Whether they are artists that have inspired your music, or are just artists that you really enjoy. 

“I think I am definitely one of those people who when I listen to artists I tend to play them on repeat a lot. I am not really someone who jumps from song to song a lot, I like to listen through albums. I think a lot of Indie Rock music from the 2000s, early 2010s is what I gravitated towards because I felt like that music was more album focused. St. Vincent, Mitski, and Nilufer Yaniya, are the types of artists I have been listening to.”  (3:30)  

I could definitely hear the early 2000s in your music! I love it! In your first EP Talk Talk I noticed a lot of your songs had a musical build up that transitioned from a mellow electronic beat to an almost punk rock sound. While your newer EP release “Imposter” has some similar tones, it is undeniable that your sound has developed. How would you describe your sound has changed going from Talk Talk to Imposter?

“I think the kind of atmosphere I was writing those different projects in kind of informed a sound on each of them. So the Talk Talk EP I wrote in isolation basically, by myself in my dorm room in NYU and everyone else in my dorm had gone home for winter break. Then, the Imposter EP I wrote when I was playing my first couple of live shows. I think I was kind of immersed in that mindset at the time, so I think it inspired some of the new sounds to come out.” 

So, how was that process being a college student and being in a creative city, but also trying to do your own thing in terms of making music? 

“It was definitely really weird. I was studying music technology at NYU so that was definitely fun for me to be able to study music at the time and it also helped build my producing chops a bit. But, being immersed in a new city was really fun for me, and definitely inspired a lot. I think definitely being in New York around everyone who is maybe also trying to do the same thing as me, brought up feelings of imposter syndrome a lot so I think that fueled the record a bit too.” 

Going back to Imposter, a lot of the themes surround self doubt, and working through those feelings. Where did the creative inspiration for this EP stem from and did it go in the direction you intended? 

“I started off writing the record without the intention of writing the EP about imposter syndrome, but I started connecting the dots between each of these songs and found that there was a common theme of imposter syndrome amongst them all. So it was actually really helpful to be able to kind of identify that pattern I have. So, I think writing the EP itself was definitely very therapeutic  and helpful to work through some of those mental patterns and processes.”

Honestly, I think that’s what makes it so relatable. Because for whatever reasons it may be everyone feels those feelings for different reasons. But, delving a bit deeper into Imposter, how was this newest EP different from your previous releases? 

“I guess this one really highlighted a kind of phase in my life where I was really experiencing these things more heavily than I do now. But, I think that I am not totally rid of these imposter syndrome thoughts. But, I think being able to write the Imposter EP has allowed me to digest those feelings better and figure them out earlier rather than later. “

I know you toured a bit before COVID, so I am curious to hear what was one of your favorite memories from performing? Because, we of course we all miss live music! 

“Definitely! I actually have played more shows abroad than I have in New York, so I feel like I have missed out on the New York live music scene a bit! But, I think one of my favorite memories was playing a show with Kate Davis in New York–in Brooklyn. That was one of my first times playing music for people, it was with friends, and it was a really nice atmosphere.”

That’s so cool that most of your performances were abroad! I feel like that is kind of rare for artists, but such a cool opportunity.

“Ya! It was super weird!”

So I know many artists don’t like listening to their music, and some really love it because it is the soundtrack to their life, so  it serves as very therapeutic for them. So, do you go back to listen to your music?

“I think I am not far enough away since I last released some of this music, so I think I would have to wait longer. When I am writing music I tend to listen to it a lot as it is part of the editing process, and to make sure it is what I want it to be. But once I know that it is being released and that other people are listening to it, I almost have second hand embarrassment from the version of myself that wrote this music. It tends to bring back so many mind games, when I listen back to old music that I have released.” 

For both of your EPs, Talk Talk and Imposter, did they creatively come about as a solo project or did they develop through being really collaborative with others?

“Actually, when I write music I do it very isolated, and I think that collaboration is something that I have been timid about because for my personality specifically I am prone to being someone who is a pushover, or adjusting myself so other people will like more or guess what they want me to say. So, I think I am definitely prone to that but, I think this EP was really fun to write on my own and then bring it to other people. Especially because my band also played on it, so having them step in at a certain phase was fun– just fun to hear their perspective on it! But, that is something I do want to work on! Just being a better collaborator and trying to lower my self criticism so that it allows me to work better with other people I think.” 

Personally, from a listener’s perspective knowing that this piece of work is all the artist’s mind and there is so much depth to it makes it all the more impressive to me! So, ending on my last question, where do you see your music style going in the future? Would you like to explore other genres? Or expand and refine your current style? 

“I kind of have written this full length project already, so it has been fun! The first EP I wrote in isolation, and now I am back to writing in isolation again without live shows being on my mind. So, it has been nice to be able to write more freely without having a band setup that I need to write to. That means exploring the electronic sounds and being able to expand on the sound a bit, as this project is a bit more production heavy, which has been really fun.”