If there is one thing GAYLE knows how to do, it’s turning life’s most chaotic moments into absolute pop perfection.
The world first fell in love with the 22-year-old Nashville native when her multi-platinum, GRAMMY-nominated monster hit “abcdefu” blew up, catapulting her into a whirlwind of global stardom. Since then, she’s spent her time filling out the ultimate dream resume: touring alongside titans like Taylor Swift, P!NK, and Tate McRae, writing hits for powerhouses like Kelly Clarkson, and even reinventing an iconic classic for the record-breaking Barbie soundtrack.
Now, after taking a step back to breathe, reflect, and grow into her adult self away from the intense spotlight, GAYLE is officially ushering in her most honest chapter yet. Following her carefree summer anthem “junebug!”, GAYLE is stripping down her guards with her emotional piano ballad, “loving you is.” The track serves as a raw, vulnerable look into self-love and walking away from toxic relationships — and it sets the stage for her highly anticipated debut full-length album, Observing Chaos, arriving September 18.
Co-written and co-produced by GAYLE herself, Observing Chaos digs deep into the wild, emotional rollercoaster of ages 17 to 21 — falling in and out of love, heartbreak, partying, and figuring out who you are. To make this era even sweeter for her day-ones, she’s launched a brand-new fan club, the g spot, and is taking a road trip to play the album directly for her community before it hits DSPs.
Celeb Secrets caught up with GAYLE to chat about taking the wheel as a producer, life lessons from stadium tours, her cozy off-duty rituals, and the secret easter eggs hidden inside Observing Chaos. Check out the full interview below and don’t forget to let us know if you’re loving “loving you is” by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sliding into our DMs on Instagram at @celebsecrets.
Celeb Secrets: The world met you during the absolute whirlwind of “abcdefu,” which was a massive global moment. Looking back at that teenage version of yourself versus the 22-year-old artist standing here today, what is the biggest secret to how you’ve grown, both personally and musically?
GAYLE: “I wouldn’t say i have a secret. it feels cheesy to say but I think the secret is that there is no secret. The truth is, I take life day by day, and I just try my best not to lose sight of how many incredible opportunities I’ve already had and what a privilege it is to get to make music for a living while still putting in the work to keep building my career!!”
CS: “junebug!” is basically a three-minute sonic block party dedicated to the month of June. Between your birthday, your family’s birthdays, and Pride Month, June is clearly your peak season. What is the most chaotic, quintessential “June memory” that you channeled into this track while co-writing and co-producing it?
GAYLE: “I’d probably say my brother’s 18th birthday! He was about to leave for college and I remember looking around the room at our friends and family knowing everyone’s lives were about to change, because half of them were about to leave for college and the other half weren’t too far away from graduating and leaving too. I was realizing that being able to get all of our friends together that easily was such a temporary thing but for me that night and the happiness we felt is infinite! There are so many memories cut into a million pieces and sprinkled into ‘junebug!’ But the intense passion i felt to FOREVER remember that day definitely lead into ‘junebug!'”
CS: Speaking of co-producing, you took the reins behind the boards for “junebug!” and Observing Chaos. What was the most empowering, or surprisingly stressful, part of sitting in the producer’s chair for your own debut album?
GAYLE: “It was honestly surprising how intimidating it became when it was time to start working on some of my ‘day of’ demos that i love so so much and turn them into full songs because demos are kind of magical! If you hate it, it’s just a demo, and if you love it, it’s only a demo!! Some of these songs stayed demos for THREE years!!! And coming back to recreate the emotion was so hard, especially on my new single ‘loving you is’ which I wrote when I was 17 and ended up recording five or six different times. There are even a few songs that still have pieces of the original demo because I realized you just can’t recreate some of those off-the-cuff moments after a full day of writing. At one point it felt like I was competing with my younger self, but then I realized 17-year-old me and 21-year-old me both wanted the exact same thing, and I knew I needed to find a way to empower and still push myself to get the result that I wanted while still honoring my younger self!!!”
CS: Your tour resume over the last few years reads like a Pop Music Hall of Fame. If you had to pick one piece of “survival advice” or a hilarious backstage lesson you learned from watching these icons command a stadium, what would it be?
GAYLE: “A piece of survival advice I would have to give is to have mantras!! I have pretty intense OCD which means my mind has a tendency to obsessively and compulsively fixate on things and I have found mantras help me guide my mind. I know it sounds like it doesn’t work but there’s phrases I’d say to myself that really helped keep me in check! For example, I hate flying. Hate it. Hate it. Hate it. Butttt when touring you’re gonna have to get on a plane a LOT and when I found myself wanting to lose my mind, I’d say ‘it’s cool to be chill’ and I’d make myself laugh and it will naturally take me out of wanting to spiral and would help me calm down. When I’d want to freak out I’d just keep going back to ‘no no you’re so cool, it’s cool to be chill.’
Sometimes I find myself not sleeping, probably needing to eat more, and drinking too much coffee and I’d find myself talking about it or maybe even liking the fact that I’ve only had black coffee and it’s 2pm. I’d then try to think ‘it’s not cool to not take care of yourself’ or i’d think in a sarcastic tone ‘ooohh you’ree soooo cool for not taking care yourself oh you’re SOOOO cool.’ It’s a lighthearted reminder that not taking care of yourself is not an aesthetic and it’s not cool AND it’s not gonna make me feel any better or get any more done. Finally my favorite mantra that I think everyone should hold close to them is ‘i did the best i could with the resources i had at the time.’
CS: Your upcoming debut album is titled Observing Chaos, which captures the wild ride of being 17 to 21. What can fans expect from the overall sonic landscape and this story you are trying to tell with this project?
GAYLE: “Honestly I would say expect to observe chaos! This album tells a pretty literal story of my life but I also think it leaves room for interpretation for you to make it your own! I for sure didn’t try and ‘re-invent the wheel’ sonically when making this album, I do feel like my album sounds like my last two EP’s but just now made by someone entering their twenties instead of being a teenager!! You can definitely tell I love pop music when listening to the melodies and looking at how most of the songs are structured but there’s also some heavy punk/rock/indie/bedroom influences in the album as well anddd certain songs highlight different intensities of said inspirations. For example, my song ‘junebug!’ is HEAVILY inspired by indie/bedroom pop when my song ‘loving is you’ is veryyy much not, but I wanted to create a world where both of those songs can live on the same project and that is one of the reasons why the album is called ‘Observing Chaos.'”
CS: We have to talk about the new fan club. Launching “the g spot” is such a brilliantly bold GAYLE move. You’re planning a road trip to play the album directly for your fans. What are you most excited to see or hear from them when they finally get a taste of this new music in person?
GAYLE: “When I went on tour, I got to meet so many amazing people and honestly I got to grow up with them. I found people who LOVED music and on top of that they love LIVE music! My mother never really took me to many concerts, so I was quite ignorant to how dedicated fans are to support their favorite artists, especially seeing them live!! I also got to open up for SUCH amazing artists and I got to walk into each show with a community they built and being able to see that was so inspiring. It was definitely important to me to make building my own community a priority while releasing this album! There’s so many social media platforms and while I think it’s SO much fun to make videos, T wanted to create a space where, if you are a fan of my music, there’s an easy way to find me! I’m REALLY excited to see all the people I saw on tour and meet new friends and play them the new music, catch up and hear about their lives and really focus on creating meaningful connections through it all <333333”
CS: A lot of people know you for your own hits, but you’ve also written for powerhouses like Kelly Clarkson and Roddy Ricch, not to mention contributing “Butterflies” to the iconic Barbie soundtrack. Is there a specific song you’ve written for someone else that you secretly wished you kept for yourself, or do you love watching your musical babies live out in the world?
GAYLE: “When I walk in the room as a songwriter for someone else’s project I have a COMPLETELY different mindset than I would for my own music. I want to help the artist I’m working with achieve their vision and whatever they want is what I want for them. When I was writing for Kelly [Clarkson], I had her in mind and I just tried to write something I thought SHE would like and relate to, and when I was writing for the ‘Barbie’ movie I had the same mentally. Iwas just thinking about what would be right for the movie. The songs that have come out that I’ve written on, I wrote them very intentionally for that artist! So I haven’t had a song come out that I REALLY wish I was singing instead, and it’s honestly so cool getting to watch those songs live their own lives!! Once I’m done writing with or for them, they’re the ones who have to put in all the extra work to record them, perform them, and market them!!”
CS: Observing Chaos digs deep into the positive and negative choices of young adulthood that includes falling in love, heartbreak, and partying. When you’re writing about highly personal, real-life drama, do you ever have to give a “heads up” text to the people who inspired the songs before the track drops, or do you just let them find out with the rest of the world?
GAYLE: “Nah, f**k em. They can deal with it.”
CS: We know you’ve spent the last few years finding your emotional center and figuring out who you are as an adult away from the spotlight. What does a typical, cozy, “non-popstar” day look like for GAYLE when you just need to unplug and reset?
GAYLE: “A cozy day for me starts with feeding my cat, sprinkles (and giving her her medicine!), then probably going back to bed before waking up for my favorite pumpkin spice coffee from Trader Joe’s. I’d maybe spend the day rewatching Heated Rivalry (for the fourth time), hang out with my mom (my mom lives pretty close to me and we LOVE arts and crafts so I’d go over and see my mom and make bracelets with her) and eat whatever she’s currently obsessed with cooking, then head home to listen to Pure Heroine, cuddle my cat, and switch between reels, Pinterest, and a movie. I’d probably need to do the dishes or laundry… but it’s a cozy day, so i’m not gonna do that.”
CS: Because we are Celeb Secrets, we have to ask – what is one hidden detail, easter egg, or “secret” from Observing Chaos that you haven’t told anyone else yet?
GAYLE: “My manager Kristina actually sings background vocals on one of the songs!!”
