Hope in the time of Chaos: Skyler Foley
In the last few days, hours, and minutes, my usual “doom” scrolling on TikTok has evolved into a ghoulish Ari Aster type of plot. I’m drowning in videos that- in real time- are documenting the possible deterioration of the internet as we know it. Congressmen (bought and paid for by The Zuck™) interrogate the CEO of a social media app through inflammatory and ridiculous lines of questioning, weaponizing the current favorite slogan of “Save the children” as a reason to strip rights and ways of communication away from American citizens. Anti-trans talking heads are constantly making videos, complaining about sharing spaces, labels, words, and probably the fucking oxygen in a room with people they are too afraid to understand. And a school shooting just happened in Nashville where three nine year old children were torn apart by bullets from a weapon of war.
My face is illuminated by the blue light of my phone for hours out of my day and I can quite literally feel the rot starting in the base of my skull. It’s spreading to my eyes. They’re just so tired.
(Aren’t we all?)
One of my favorite brain teasers, is to think about the impact social media has on all of us. I think about the birth of the influencer and how she dictated everything from the shoes I bought to the custom eating disorders my friends developed. I think about the performance that social media introduced to the millennial generations, our perfectly curated feeds and photos that made us feel important- because we mattered enough to be documented. Our lunches, our outfits, our coffee- it was all a part of our personal brands and all of the things we loved could be monetized and if we hustled enough we could become our own girl bosses for the low low price of $19.99 some side effects may cause internal bleeding, insomnia, and in some rare cases even death.
I also think about art.
I think about how social media has connected me to more people than I ever thought I’d know in my life time, and when you really strip it down, what is art but a grasp at connecting with someone? (At least what I’d like to classify as “genuine” art. If it’s art made from and for the ego, then it’s just masturbation, let’s be real). I think about how brilliant individuals have taken social media and all of it’s side effects, and they’ve molded it in the shape of themselves and used it to hold up mirrors; mirrors that reflect back our personal Dorian Gray portraits decaying with sin. I think about how artists use social media as an emergency flare, sending signals of “I’m right here!” and we try to save each other.
Skyler Foley ignited an entire fucking fourth of July firework show and I saw it and after listening to them and their music, I can’t help but hope that maybe we’ll make it out of this.
While our politicians don’t understand how TikTok connects to WiFi, we are all well aware of how the app has drastically changed the landscape of the music industry. TikTok is the first frontier a song has to tackle before it can be certified as a hit and record companies are clamoring to weaponize the algorithm for their benefit. TikTok has launched so many careers of songwriters and performers because their videos have gone viral. Of course, this creates the next hurdle for artists: can they create more than just a viral moment? Can they make albums? Can they hold our attention for more than 30 seconds? Skyler Foley is, I feel, a great example of more than just one viral moment.
Skyler has been writing songs since they were 13 years old. They’ve been cutting their teeth at Battle of the Band competitions and original songs won them more points, so they started writing. Since 2019, they’ve released three EPs that are not only great examples of the power and importance of the folk punk genre, but they’re also great examples of incredible lyricism; blending biting social commentary with a dry sense of humor that is just as funny as it is smart. I love that Skyler’s music is both accessible and thought provoking. Like a good novel or play, Skyler doesn’t assume their audience needs to be spoon-fed ideas or metaphors. They know you’re right there with them in each song.
In 2021, Skyler went viral on TikTok for a song they wrote called “You’re Gonna Outlive Mitch McConnell”. For queer kids everywhere, this song is a salve. A balm on a wound that keeps reopening. When I first heard it, I laughed. I love the idea that this 100 year old tortoise will have a legacy that is encapsulated in a punchy acoustic anthem that waxes poetic about his inevitable death. I also think that’s the brilliance of the song- these awful people, their awful legislations, and violence will die, because they will die.
Sometimes I need that reminder that this heartbreak is not forever.
You’re gonna outlive Mitch McConnell
Don’t you wanna outlive Mitch McConnell?
It’s not very long till he’s Mc-gone-ell
While this song got a lot of attention on the internet, once the likes and comments subsided, it was an opportunity for Skyler to prove they’re more than one viral moment. In 2022, they released their most recent EP Coffee Person and if it wasn’t clear before, it is now: Skyler is an artist that I think we all need, especially now.
Lyrically, Skyler is razor sharp and simultaneously vulnerable. I love the way Skyler infuses humor into their songs and I am especially inspired by the way they write songs. One of my favorite quotes is “History never repeats itself, but it does often rhyme” (Mark Twain). Skyler came across a political cartoon from the 1920’s and found it to be incredibly ironic, considering the parallels we were experiencing 100 years later.
From this cartoon, Skyler wrote “Normalcy”. Normalcy feels nostalgic. Skyler dips into traditional pop punk sounds: a buzzing guitar, bouncy drums, a trumpet (!), and a bellowing vocal line that sings about the rapture of Normalcy. Normalcy was embedded in our lives, driving us home, until suddenly we realized we were alone. And trying to get back to “normal” isn’t possible. Instead “normalcy” is weaponized and bastardized into different versions that never even existed for some of us. We’re left with our thoughts and our realizations that maybe we were never happy, maybe we were never “normal”.
Political cartoons, infamous vines (“Road work ahead? I sure hope it does!”/ “Workout? Uh, Yeah, I sure Hope It Does”), and Dungeons & Dragons are all things that Skyler has taken, disassembled, and rebuilt into songs. I. Love. That. While I love the romantic, love struck songs of so many iconic singer songwriters, I’m also so excited to experience an artist that is capable of writing about ideas and feelings in the way that Skyler does.
But my brain is made of packing tape
And old tags from the mall
Built back when computers were big and the world was really small
The rest of the Coffee Person is a trove of smart musical moments. The titular song, “Coffee Person” is that ever true story of losing a piece of yourself as you grow up and try to assimilate into a version of yourself that you think you should be. You hear this tension directly in the guitar. The guitar starts out in a sweet, plucked folk style- as the voice enters, describing how they’ve become a Coffee Person- a responsible, routine kind of person. However, when the vocal line says “and it’s enough to stay alive” the guitar tells us that’s a lie through a distinct dissonance in the chords. The vocal line slowly deteriorates and becomes more anxious and as more truth is revealed, the less dissonant the guitar sounds. Skyler is an artist that values truth, even if it cuts.
I think my favorite moment on Coffee Person is “Wronged”. The song is just another acoustic guitar, vocal song- but the way Skyler plays the guitar and truly bellows this vocal line makes this song feel galactic. The moment that sucked the air out of the room for me, was the climax of the song at about the half way point. The guitar drops out, and Skyler bellows “I won’t be the bigger person- I am far too small”. Eleven words and they’ve perfectly encapsulated that red hot anger that you get from betrayal. That hurt that’s under your skin, the one you can’t shake off. Skyler’s voice in this song is absolutely relentless and perfect.
While I love the balance between snide sense of humor and tenderness, my favorite Skyler songs are the soft ones. A song that completely took me by surprise was a song they released on their first EP in 2019 (Evil). “Nebulas” is a stunning example of the kind of songwriter and musician Skyler already is and will become. Personally, I find the vocal work on Nebulas to be some of the most impressive that Skyler offers. It’s an incredibly tender vocal line that matches perfectly with the vulnerability of the acoustic guitar that accompanies it. And Jesus Christmas- it’s an unbelievably catchy melody. This melody haunts me every day. It’s embedded in my heart now.
Back when I talked to Skyler in August of 2022, they said something along the lines of “I do this because I have to”. They have to write the songs, they have to play the chords, they have to create. When we spoke, they had mentioned how they’re still finding their personal style and how they present themselves to the world, and I love the duality in that. That even while discovering themselves, they know at their core, they have to create. For myself, when I’m in periods of vulnerability, like self discovery, I feel like my creative self gets paralyzed (hi hello this is my first blog post in almost a year). I love how self assured Skyler is in their artistry and their ability to create. I admire it so much.
As a songwriter, Skyler never tells us this shit gets easier. And rather than shy away from the ugly, difficult feelings- Skyler leads us straight to them; offering a look at their own wounds to let us know that ours will heal too. Their songwriting is fresh and truly innovative, offering some of the most satisfying musical moments for a listener.
While I don’t know what fresh hell tomorrow will bring, I take solace in the fact that when I embark on my nightmare scrolls through endless feeds, there are artists out there like Skyler. Artists that are tough little lighthouses for us to turn to when we feel lost and weatherworn, guiding us to a new place that feels so familiar. An island that we thought we had forgotten, a place we thought we’d never visit again: hope.
You can listen to Skyler’s music on Spotify and Apple music.