Interview and photos by Tasha Stalley
Lunar June is making waves in the Indie Pop scene, with her blend of raw emotion and innovative production. Her latest single, ‘supplements’, represents a key moment in her growth as an artist, highlighting a shift in sound that merges electronic experimentation with a more organic approach to songwriting.
Karma! Magazine had the chance to sit down with Lunar June to discuss her transformative journey, from TikTok-fueled quests for self-betterment to collaborative songwriting sessions that double as therapy.
TASHA: Can you introduce yourself? You go by “Lunar June”, how did this come about?
LUNAR JUNE: I had a project before this called “la lune”. I’ve always been obsessed with space and celestial vibes. So, when I was rebranding, I wanted to keep that but make it a bit more personal. For my last project, I wasn’t very forward-facing. For this, I wanted to be more at the forefront of the music, so I kept Lunar, and I’m born in June!
T: So, tell us about ‘supplements’—it explores the theme of self-improvement and the breakdown of a relationship. Can you tell me more about the inspiration behind the song?
LJ: I’ve always been quite a self-reflective, emotional person—hence being a songwriter, I guess! But I became very fixated on this idea of self-improvement and was literally on TikTok, getting deep into health and self-improvement holes—what supplements are best for the brain, mental health, anxiety, and all that kind of stuff, and reading so many self-help books. I drove myself a bit mad because I was trying to improve myself too quickly to save this relationship.
One of the lyrics is, “I’ve been trying to fix myself for you, but I’ve been breaking us instead,” because although I was trying to make myself better, I was making it way more stressful by trying to speed up the healing process to an unhealthy extent.
T: You write your own lyrics—how did your experience shape the lyrics and overall message of ‘supplements’?
LJ: I wrote this song with a guy called Duncan Brookfield. We actually went to school together, but he was a few years above me, so we never really spoke much. But he’s always done music, and we reconnected and wrote another song together, which I released on my second EP called ‘l-o-v-e’, and then we wrote this one together. He’s so great to work with, and we were just exploring. When we have a writing session, it’s initially a therapy session, spilling out your innermost emotions. I had this idea of writing a song about what I was going through, so we quickly wrote the verses, and then it progressed into the chorus. It was really cool to write with him and really fun.
T: What does the release of ‘supplements’ signify for you on a personal level?
LJ: I feel like with every songwriter, what they write and release is a very live diary of where they are emotionally with their life—at least, that has been the case for me. I think ‘supplements’ signifies the beginning of a new era for me. It sounds a bit different from the music I’ve released before. I would say lyrically, it’s quite different. It’s my favourite thing that I’ve done so far, for sure—it feels like a step in a more self-aware direction.
T: As you said, the song represents a sonic shift from your previous releases. What influenced this change in sound, and how does it reflect your growth as an artist?
LJ: The first two EPs feel very much like a figuring out of who I am and what I want to sound like. When I first started writing music, it was always folky and singer-songwriter-y, and I got bored of that and wanted to go the complete other way and go very electronic! Now, I’ve found a really nice middle ground where it has electronic elements but is paired back with what I grew up writing. It feels really nice—going back to writing on guitar and having more organic elements feels very cathartic and authentic to what I want to write and create. I honestly think it’s a time thing—experimenting and trying different things. I owe a lot of that to my producer Luke—I’ve worked with him on everything I’ve released, and he’s really helped me mould that sound, which has been amazing!
T: You’ve cited Charli XCX and Lorde as major influences. How did their music influence ‘supplements’, if at all? Were there other influences?
LJ: Lorde and Charli XCX have always been such a huge influence, especially in my earlier work. They’re always there in the background, whether it’s production choices, lyric choices, or top-line choices.
I think I’m becoming more influenced by people I grew up listening to, and more by people who lived more in the indie space or alternative space. I’ve been getting really into Maisie Peters, Holly Humberstone, and artists like that, and I think that is really coming through. I feel really excited because I want to pair those artists with Charli and Lorde—two different worlds colliding, where it’s organic and emotional but with really innovative, interesting production.
T: ‘supplements’ deals with the idea of trying to fix yourself to stay in a relationship. How has your perspective on self-improvement and self-acceptance evolved since writing the song?
LJ: I think I’ve managed to establish a healthier relationship with it, where I’ve relieved that pressure from myself and stopped trying to make myself perfect.
You know, it’s great to be self-aware and want to improve your shortcomings, but at the end of the day, you have to accept who you are. If you don’t, it’s just a nightmare. That’s not to say you can behave badly—I’m always going to be a deeply emotional person, and that’s okay. There’s a lot of strength in that. I have a much better relationship with it now—I’m not trying to change myself so much, just trying to change how I think about things. That’s what is important.
T: You describe the core belief of needing to be fixed as destructive. How did you overcome this mindset, and how does that process reflect in your music now?
LJ: I overcame the mindset through a lot of therapy [laughs]. I did CBT for the first time, which was great, and it was just about changing my thought patterns more than changing myself. I think with the music I’m creating now, lyrically a lot of what I was writing before was so self-deprecating and dark. But now, there are still elements of that—we’re all human and have elements of light and dark in ourselves. But it’s less “I’m so broken, and I need to be fixed” and more direct and honest. I think that also just comes with getting older and growing up a bit.
T: Do you think the themes of ‘supplements’ connect to your previous work, or does it feel like an entity on its own?
LJ: There are definitely things that connect it, but it’s going into a different space. I find that really exciting—I love it when I’m in a place where I don’t really know what’s coming next for my writing. As much as I actually hate uncertainty, that’s when it’s really exciting. With the dance-y stuff, it felt like I wasn’t going to be surprised by what I made, whereas going into this realm where it’s incorporating more indie, I feel like I don’t know what I’m going to make next, and I love that!
T: Looking forward, what are your current aspirations in terms of new music and artistic direction? Are there any new projects on the horizon you’re excited about?
LJ: I’ve got my next release pretty much lined up, which is really exciting! I’m already working on new stuff, but I think at the moment, I just want to release singles and see how it goes. I released two EPs in the space of a year—I think rather than releasing a whole body of work again, I just want to experiment, see what comes, see what I’m enjoying, and just release singles until I feel I’ve established something that fits into a body of work.
T: Finally, if there’s one message you hope listeners take away from ‘supplements’, what would it be?
LJ: A message of self-acceptance and self-love. I feel like that’s a word that’s used so much and gets a bit icky, but I think it is really important. If you’re trying to change yourself to be with someone or not accepting yourself, it’s so destructive to your inner sense of sanity and peace. Trying to have self-compassion and accepting and embracing your flaws is vital—obviously not excusing bad behaviour, but just trying to be kind to yourself.
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