Singer/Songwriter Arden Alexa is a San Francisco native who entered the music scene in 2021. She began exploring her creative sound by dabbling with youthful indie beats all while infusing her own quirky style, not to mention her deep, poetic lyricism that creates the perfect ‘main character moment’ for anyone who’s listening.
Alexa’s debut single, 2021’s “The Coast” gave everyone a taste of the musical talent that the artist had to offer. Following that release in 2022 was the artist’s first full length project, “Day Dreams” — a six song EP that reels you into Arden’s world with captivating lyrics and dreamlike melodies. The artist’s latest single, “Strawberry Pie“, shows off a more sophisticated side while still maintaining that youthful essence that’s present in her previous work, not to mention the adorable homestyle music video accompanying the single, paying tribute to Alice In Wonderland with the super cute stuffed animals and tea party (plus our favorite supporting actor, blowup boyfriend Chad).
When asked about the story behind “Strawberry Pie“, Arden Alexa revealed to CelebSecrets in an exclusive interview, “Almost all of the song is based in truth. I met this guy freshman year of high school and was pretty much immediately in love with him. We ended up dating for around 6-7 months and towards the end of that school year, I noticed he was feeling down so I decided to make him a strawberry pie (a recipe that actually has been in my family for multiple generations). I blame it on teenage stupidity, but when I gave him the pie he essentially told me he didn’t like strawberry pie and then we broke up later that day. We were involved again senior year (it was all very full circle), but as life goes, all good things come to an end.”
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“I honestly think that whoever said that you never really get over your first love was absolutely correct. There’s something really special about that first deep connection that is hard to completely let go, especially when you are seeing each other every day at school. This ex and I did have a really deep, genuine connection, but after our rekindling senior year, I realized that we were better off as friends. Now that he’s off at college and there’s a bit of distance, it’s easier to reflect on our history with a sense of humor and fondness. It only took me a couple of years but I finally was able to let go of that romance and just appreciate the incredible friendship that we do have, allowing me to write this song!” She added when asked about why it took 4 years post-relationship to craft this piece.
When asked about goals for the new year, Alexa revealed to us that she’s “super excited to start playing shows for fans, release a few more videos, and record more music!”
Us along with many fans are head over heels for “Strawberry Pie” and to those who haven’t heard it: Where have you been?!
Let us know what you think of Arden Alexa by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sending us a tweet at @celebsecrets.
You can keep up with Alexa by giving her a follow on Instagram + YouTube + Spotify.
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Celeb Secrets: What were the emotions you were going through while writing “Strawberry Pie”?
Arden Alexa: “This song was just so much fun to write. I remember sitting at my piano and laughing to myself as I was writing it. I genuinely don’t harbor any negative emotions about the whole strawberry pie situation, I just find it hilarious. And I think that definitely is reflected in the writing, which isn’t sad or melancholy, but rather pretty sarcastic and fun.”
CS: What was the songwriting process like for “Strawberry Pie” in comparison to your debut single “The Coast”?
AA: “Probably the biggest difference between the writing process of the two songs was the amount of time it took for each to be written once I was inspired. The Coast was inspired by a family trip to Mendocino, after which, I promptly wrote the song as soon as I got home. In contrast, I think that the idea for Strawberry Pie was ruminating in my brain for a long time. The story of our breakup is honestly one of my favorite stories to tell, and it has kind of become folklore in my house and at my high school. Telling this story over the years allowed me to process the whole thing and build up inspiration, so that when I finally sat down at the piano to write it, I knew exactly what I wanted to say.”
CS: Did you have any say in the production process of “Strawberry Pie”? If so, what artistic choices did you make in the development of this song?
AA: “Yes! I love being involved in the production process. My producer is located in New York so usually when starting a new song, I fly there for a couple of days to work in the studio with him. Going into the studio for any song, I try to make a playlist of songs that are produced similar to how I want my song to be, or at least have some specific ideas of how the song should sound. For this song, I went into the studio knowing that I wanted it to be super indie, more so than my previously released music, and super unique in sound. Because the indie genre is so popular right now, I knew that I wanted something that would stand out and could immediately be identified as my music. In terms of actual production, the creation of this song was the most involved I’d ever been. I knew exactly what sounds I wanted for some sections, for example, I knew immediately that the chorus needed to have bells and lots of vocal harmonies. I wrote quite a few of the instrument lines, all of the vocal harmonies, and (if i remember correctly) even played an instrument or two on the track.”
CS: This song feels very reminiscent of a Olivia Rodrigo/Taylor Swift vibe (in the best way possible!). Did you draw any inspiration from them or anyone else in particular when writing/composing “Strawberry Pie”?
AA: “Absolutely, I am hands down the biggest Swiftie. Taylor Swift has been my favorite artist since I was little so I definitely draw a lot of inspiration from her in all of my music. In the studio, one of the first things we do is sit and listen to a couple hours of music to pick out any particular sounds or genres that we want to include in the song. For this song in particular, we listened to a lot of indie artists such as Gracie Abrams and Claire Rosinkranz, really looking at what makes each indie artist distinct and what unifies the genre. Then, we spend a significant amount of time listening to 50s and 60s music such as Elvis, Dean Martin, the Everly Brothers, and the Beatles. We thought it would be interesting to include the bluesy, old timey feel to the song, so we took a lot of inspiration from these older artists as well.”
CS: Tell us a little bit more about the artistic choices for filming the music video for “Strawberry Pie”, like your reasoning for doing a more home-style video and the inclusion of the adorable blow-up boyfriend Chad.
AA: “I came up with the concept for this video with my producer in the studio as we were recording the song. Since the song is pretty sarcastic and silly, we were just throwing around ridiculous ideas for a music video. We knew immediately that it should be a more casual home-style video just based on the vibe of the song; I didn’t think a super polished, movie-like video would match the indie vibe of the song. Chad, my wonderful blow-up boyfriend, was one of the ideas that we came up with that immediately stuck. From there, it just became about how ridiculous we could make the video, while still making it doable for me at home.”
CS: What was it like filming a more home-style video for “Strawberry Pie” in comparison to something more produced like the music video for your single “Summer Girl”?
AA: “Filming these two music videos were totally different experiences from each other. With the Summer Girl video, we had a whole camera and lighting crew, makeup and hair crew, etc. It definitely felt very professional. While still incredibly fun to make, that video required a lot more preparation and a lot more time to make, just based on the nature of working with so many people and the shots we were trying to achieve. In contrast, the Strawberry Pie video was filmed by my best friend in the span of a few hours. I knew what shots I wanted to include, but did essentially no other preparation than thinking about what I wanted it to look like. Most of the clips in the video are footage of us just fooling around and having fun, which is exactly what I was hoping for. We even filmed most of it using my iPhone and didn’t stress the need for perfect lighting or angles.”
CS: Did you have any video/style references when filming the music video? What personal flares of yours did you include in the making of it?
AA: “Going along with the theme of a more old fashioned, vintage feel to the song, I wanted this music video to have the vibes of the black & white films of the 1920s. There are many little things in the video that are reminiscent of that genre of film, such as the written story cards at the beginning and the end, the sped-up clips, and very exaggerated acting. I also wanted this video to really introduce my viewers to my world and my personality, so I think that the video pretty accurately encapsulates me – a little crazy, a little cute, very dramatic. Additionally, everything in the video is pretty personal to me, from the settings to the stuffed animals to the clothes that Chad wears. Everything was filmed either in my house or close to it, and almost all of the props were things that I stole from around my house.”
CS: Can we expect a potential EP/Album following the release of this single?
AA: “I have a couple more singles in the works, but definitely get ready for something bigger!”
CS: Since we’re Celeb Secrets, do you have any secrets (fun facts) about yourself and creating “Strawberry Pie” that we wouldn’t know just by listening to it?
AA: “If you listen closely, you might be able to pick up that my older brother actually sings on the track! And, the dog bark at the beginning is actually my producer’s dog who spent the day in the studio with us while recording!”
