KELSIE KIMBERLIN
Q: Your song “Perfume” uses scent as a metaphor for love. What inspired you to make the comparison?
A. Both love and fragrant perfumes can be intoxicating and attracting, and many times, they work together.
Q: You mentioned that you were inspired by the novel and film Perfume. How did you use that inspiration and turn it into something more positive?
A. Yes, I read the book and watched the film when I was in high school, and they were terrifying. But they left a deep impression about the power of scents on love and desire. So, I wanted to put a positive spin on this power.
Q: The lyrics describe love as something one cannot help but be drawn to, something almost hypnotic. Do you believe love always has such power?
A. Love certainly is not always powerfully mesmerizing. But sometimes, it is magical in its effects. Once a person feels that, he or she yearns to find it again if it gets lost.
Q: The idea of love leaving a lasting impression, the same way a lingering fragrance lingers, is so powerful in this song. Have you ever had that happen to you in life?
A. It sounds corny, but yes, I have had more that, and more than one relationship has left me dreamy and wanting more. It was an irresistible force that I just had to give in to.
Q: “Perfume” is about love as seen in every way. Was that planned from the start, or something that emerged whilst writing?
A. Once I get an idea for a song, it comes very fast. Perfume was written in a few hours, both the lyrics and the music. The only thing that I added the next day was the ending, which riffs off of the end of the Beatles song, “I Will.” This was also metaphoric because it was me telling my partner that “I will” love him both emotionally and physically.
Q: There is confidence in the lyrics, as though love is a game and you know where it’s going to end. Was that a fun role to perform for you?
A. The filming of the video was fun because I did not have to sing lyrics, which is something I don’t really like to do. Here, all I had to do was keep a straight face and emote. There were times during the filming where my partner and I just broke out laughing because the director kept telling us not to smile.
Q: To use perfume as a metaphor for love is very atypical. How did you come up with that concept compared to a more conventional love story?
A. I wanted to do something different in a love song, and I pondered the mystery of love and tried to think of something else that had a similar mysterious effect, and then realized that love and perfume have been used together forever to strengthen a personal attraction.
Q: Your lyrics speak of following one’s senses and not reason. Should love always be based on emotion and not reason?
A. I think most loves start with emotion and an invisible attraction. After that wears off a bit, it can be based on reason. Most relationships fail because they only go for the emotional attraction, and then reality sets in. When perfume fades, we have to reapply it, and the same goes for love. It takes a lot of work for it to succeed.
Q: “Perfume” is a song that sounds like it’s about being attracted to a person, but it is also a song about power. Do love and power go hand in hand, in your view?
A. Love and power can be intertwined, but I do not want people to think that I am saying that I should have power over my lover. Instead, it is more about attraction, and in the video, you can see that we stop, hug, touch, and stare at one another as equals.
Q: What scent does this song smell like?
A. A mixture of lilac and honeysuckle, with a touch of orange.
Q: You write such an intense description of love being impossible to forget. Do you think some loves last a lifetime?
A. I have met many people who have found love for a lifetime. I think that currently, with all the distractions from social media and a billion choices, love is more difficult to hold for a long period. That said, I do think that finding the love of one’s life is very affirming and cool.
Q: There’s a cinematic feel to your lyrics, as if a scene is being acted out. Do you ever picture scenes when you’re writing your songs?
A. Yes, I try to tell stories with a lot of my music. I love making music videos, and my biggest fan base comes from YouTube, so I am always thinking about how to portray my songs in film.
Q: “Perfume” is incredibly intimate yet also universal. Did you take from your own life, or was it more a creative exploration?
A. The “Perfume” book and movie were powerful influences on me growing up. I wondered how a perfume could cause a man to become so obsessive. But as I got older, I saw so many relationships that were also extremely obsessive, sometimes dangerously so. This realization also helped me to formulate the song because I understood that these mysterious forces can be positive or negative, depending on how we use them.
Q: Do you think that the way we experience love is the same as the way we experience scent—something that we can’t always control but which can trigger deep emotions?
A. I have always been fascinated by the invisible attraction of love and realized that perfume also has a similar attraction, and that is why there is a multi-billion dollar perfume industry in the world.
Q: The song has a timeless quality, as if it might be used for love stories of any era. Was that an intention on your part when you wrote it?
A. I wanted to write a song that could apply to anyone and any time in history. Perfumes have been around for thousands of years, and so has love. Many people have commented that this song would work well in movies from any era.
Q: If you had to pick one word that would describe the emotion that “Perfume” evokes, what would it be?
A. Mysterious.
Q: What do you hope listeners take away from the lyrics of this song?
A. I hope that everyone who listens to the song and watches the video will relate to my message that sometimes words are not necessary to convey a feeling of love. The attraction is magnetic.
