Intertwine

Since the release of her 2020 debut, Billie Ave., singer-songwriter Alicia Moffet has not only experienced a fair bit of success—she’s also been through some of the most defining moments in her young life. “I think what links all the songs is that they talk about me, about what I’ve been through and what I’ve come to realize in the last few years,” she tells Apple Music of Intertwine, her follow-up EP. “I experienced things that formed me as a woman: Becoming a mother, especially, has helped me find myself. And then, when I became an adult, I put an end to a relationship. Through all of this, I’ve learned to live, to accept that the difficult moments are necessary, that everything is connected—hence the title.” While she’s gained that wisdom, Moffet has lost nothing of her spontaneity or enthusiasm. Produced with her faithful collaborator, Richard Beynon (BYNON), Intertwine’s scintillating style of pop reveals the different facets of her personality. “I didn’t decide on a specific musical line, other than to try and do something new every time,” she adds. “I like electro, pop, R&B, alternative music, and what I do is a mixture of all that.” Here, she unravels the threads of Intertwine, track by track.

“Run to You”
“If this track is at the beginning of the album, it’s not the result of a well-thought-out strategy, but simply because it’s my favorite! There’s something catchy about it and it’s impossible to be in a bad mood when you listen to it—or play it. I usually like the music to reflect the feelings expressed in the song, but this one is quite lighthearted even though I wrote it when I was going through a difficult time, when I was just about to split up. When I’m overwhelmed with emotion, my barriers come down and the songs come to me almost on their own.”

“Hard Feelings”
“It was written by Dani Poppitt, an artist from LA who I’ve worked with before and we’d really hit it off at the time, on both a personal and artistic level. For me, it’s essential that there be an emotional connection with someone before I’m able to work with them. Otherwise, I won’t get anywhere. I usually prefer to put together a song from scratch, but when I heard what Dani had done, I immediately identified with what she was talking about. It talks about that almost unconditional love you can feel for people who have hurt you, but who you always answer the minute they call you.”

“Addicted” (feat. Zach Zoya)
“It’s a song my producer BYNON wrote with Zach Zoya about three years ago. I freaked out when I heard it for the first time. One day, when we were in the studio, he said to me that if I really liked it that much, all I had to do was step up to the mic and record it. It wasn’t very hard because I knew it by heart. Zach loved what we’d done, so it became an Alicia Moffet track featuring Zach Zoya, but it could just as easily have been the other way around. It talks about being hooked on someone you’re in a toxic relationship with. The most important line is, ‘It’s hard to show you love/I can’t even love myself.’ I could identify with all that. In that kind of relationship, you end up not knowing if the evil comes from the other person or from yourself.”

“Lullaby”
“I wrote this one in April 2021, at a time when I was feeling really frustrated, particularly about certain aspects of my profession and, above all, with certain people in the industry. I’ve met people who have made me offers that were totally ridiculous, and others who have tried to convince me that I’d never be able to succeed without their help. I felt used, tossed back and forth, and I just felt like saying, ‘Fuck that!’ What I like when I’m in the studio with BYNON is that we start off by talking about what we need to get off our chest and when he realizes there’s something I need to get out, he sits down at the piano, creates a few beats, and everything just comes really naturally. At the time, we didn’t know yet what shape my project would take, but everyone around me agreed that this had to be the first single.”


“Your Knife”
“I wrote this song in Los Angeles. Initially, it talked about a difficult relationship. The message was quite bleak, like, ‘If you know how to hurt me, it’s because you know what my weaknesses are; but it also means that you know me really well and what we have together is special.’ In the end, I thought that way of thinking was a bit toxic, and the track’s meaning changed over time. It became, ‘You know how to hurt me and that’s the reason I’m leaving.’ It’s crucial that I feel connected to my songs, so I altered the idea so that it better reflects my current situation.”


“Better Day”
“I wrote this song after my dog died in 2020. I consider myself very lucky never to have experienced grief before that, but I was really affected by it. Most of all, it led me to ask myself questions. My dog was only a year and a half old, and she died in an accident, and the only thing I could ask myself was, ‘Why?’ What am I supposed to understand from all of this? Is there a lesson to be learned? Is it karma? Despite the title, it’s not a happy or optimistic song. I don’t see this better day coming along, but instead a series of questions like those. In the lyrics, I ask, ‘If I was a better person, would I be having a better day?’ Musically, I think it was influenced by a track by FINNEAS; he writes songs that are simple yet very intense at the same time. The lyrics are quite harsh and deep, and I wanted the music to be in the same vein, a bit full-on.”


“If I Fall”
“At the time I wrote this one, I was going through a lot of intense and difficult things in my relationships. I went through a sort of breakup—a friendship one—and afterwards, I became very distrustful of others. At the heart of the song lies this question: ‘If I fall, will you hold out your hand and help me get back up or will you just tread on me?’ Musically, it’s definitely BYNON’s world, very electronic. It’s a style I love, but I’d never really done anything like that before. It’s different from the rest, with a bit of a party vibe. I can easily picture myself playing it during an evening when you’re having a few drinks.”


“Airplane Mode”
“After my debut album, I went through a pretty intense period. I learned a lot, but at the time I couldn’t really take advantage of it, all the more so because I’d just had a baby. And I was really fed up because everyone kept asking me what I was going to do next. The song basically says, ‘Leave me alone, I need some peace, I’m switching my phone to Airplane Mode.’ We reworked the music really often because I found it too monotonous and, in the end, the final version has something cinematic about it. I don’t know if it’ll end up featuring in a film one day, but I think it’s got great potential.”