Welcome To Karma! Magazine

Written by Annie Barber.

Is Carol Ades the worst person in the world? Her latest single might have you believing so. But peel back the layers and what you’ll find is an unfiltered track about the emotional rollercoaster that accompanies your period. The New Jersey raised, LA based artist is making a name for herself by exploring the theme of girlhood with honesty and pinpoint accuracy. Hot off the heels of this latest release, a single by the name of ‘Worst Person In The World’, indie-pop artist Carol Ades answered some of Karma!’s most burning questions about the project. 

The ‘Worst Person In The World’ is a very honest track about the conflicting emotions that come along with getting your period. Ades says that the idea for the song came to her when she was having a particularly bad day: “I woke up feeling so stuck in my own spiral of negative self talk and I was talking to my friends about [it] as if I was trying to convince them? I was like ok if I can get them to also agree I’m the worst person in the world then maybe the spiral will stop and I’ll hear how ridiculous it sounds coming from their mouths. It inspired me to put that into a song so I could hear my own voice move through the spiral and eventually land at the obvious realisation that I am, in fact, NOT the worst person in the world. I’m just a girl!” She continues, saying that “It’s so easy for your thoughts to become the controller of your narrative and I loved the idea of the song feeling like this almost bratty display of self loathing. It’s sort of like a temper tantrum but you need to have it sometimes to realise it was never that deep.”

Ades is known for having a very unfiltered style of songwriting. She says that when she’s writing and wants to tap into her emotions and thoughts, she uses “the little truth meter” in her gut: “You know how you can say something and then you get that feeling [like] wait that’s not it… that’s not really how I feel. I just really try and listen to that feeling because for me the whole point of writing songs is to have a place to put my unfiltered thoughts! Otherwise they stay stuck inside me and that’s depressing.”

The feelings that Ades writes about in the single are universal and it is sure it will bring comfort to people experiencing those period mood swings. Is there any song, album or artist in particular that has brought Ades comfort in those moments in the past? “I love MUNA and Katie Gavin’s writing for this reason, same with Olivia Barton and Imogen Heap – they all have a very similar way of moving through any particular emotion so by the end you see the story (and yourself) differently. I just love music that brings you somewhere new in the end – like the purpose of it was to explore the feeling so by the end of the 2 ish minutes you can let go of it if that makes sense? But for this feeling (period PMS spiral) I honestly have just rinsed this song bc it was so therapeutic listening to my own voice realise how ridiculous my own spiral is.”

The track’s music video is very theatrical and creative and I mention that the text at the beginning made me think of old Disney movies. She says “Yes! That was the inspiration. This feeling really made me think of being a kid and putting on performances with my cousins and sisters for my family. I remember being like ‘ok I am 8 and I am here to prove something. Get ready’ and the adults would be like ‘Jesus Christ, another performance .. ok.’ It felt so pure and genuine but also motivated by something a lot heavier and I wanted the video to have the same sincere ‘drama’ of all the feelings. It felt really nostalgic to make.”

Ades has previously written for artists such as Selena Gomez, Ava Max, Demi Lovato, and KATSEYE. I inquire if her writing process differs when writing music for herself rather than for other artists, if it does at all? “It totally depends! When I’m writing for other artists, sometimes their feelings align perfectly with mine or I just have to try and find my own connection to their story so I can help them build it out but when it comes to my own music I can actually be a lot more rigid in the process because I’m going off that truth meter gut feeling that only I can decide when I’ve reached it.”

Last year she released her debut album, titled ‘Late Start’. Girlhood and growing up are at the forefront of the songs on it, as well as on ‘Worst Person In The World’. She says that focusing on those themes wasn’t a conscious choice: “I don’t even think I mean to make every song about girlhood and growing up I just think that’s what’s genuinely been on my mind these last few years. I have a lot of questions about myself and I’m sure I always will – music is really my way of exploring them and I actually wonder if I’ll ever write about anything else. I don’t know!”

As for her plans for the rest of the year and 2026, Ades says she’s finishing new music and might have “a little project” in store for her fans. She says “I’m really diving into the creative visual aspect of my world for this next project and trying to push myself and see what happens! I’m also spending a lot of time daydreaming about next year.”

I ask her the first of Karma!’s mandatory questions: ‘If you or your art were a colour, what would it be?’ “Ooh. Ok if I were a colour I’d be green. Like olive green. Earthy sturdy truth seeking – but I think my art would be navy blue and light pink. [It] feels like the dichotomy I try to prioritise in my music – like one stable mature side (blue) and the more chaotic spacey whimsical side (pink) and they’re always fighting against each other in a beautiful way.”  

For the second, the song that she recommends we add to the Karma! Playlist is ‘Something Pretty’ by Macy Todd. She gushes about the song and Todd, saying “I actually just heard this song the other day and i loved it so much… Her voice is unreal and it’s been keeping me company on my drives.”

So is Carol Ades the ‘Worst Person In The World’? Absolutely not! She’s gifted and warm, but I’m sure many of us can relate to feeling like your most evil side comes out when your period is getting you down. Ades’ ability to wear her heart on her sleeve and say the things that many of us try to keep under wraps is a talent that gives her music widespread relatability and bring comfort to others who are going through the same things. 

‘Worst Person In The World’ in out now and available to listen to on streaming services or download. You can watch its accompanying music video on YouTube, and follow Carol on Instagram and TikTok to keep up to date with what she does next.