Avril Jensen Is Still Asking the Question: Is any of this real?
Some artists write songs that read like diary entries, and then there’s Avril Jensen, who builds worlds for you to live in.
Speaking from Montreal ahead of her first-ever trip to Toronto, where she’ll be performing at the Drake Underground, Jensen is thoughtful, self-aware, and quietly funny. Her music lives somewhere between fiction and feeling, toeing the line between nostalgia and anemoia.
At the center of her work is a question she hasn’t stopped asking herself: Is any of this real?
Avril Jensen, Photo by Camille Gladu-Drouin
Sierra Madison: You’ve described your songs as almost like short stories. When you start writing, do you begin with a character, a feeling, or a world?
Avril Jensen: It really depends. I think most of my music is, like, random; a lot of it is based on TV shows or movies or books I read that I really liked. I have this kind of instinct to transcribe into music the things that make me feel a lot. I have a song about Red Dead Redemption two, I cried so much at the end, it just made me go through a whole emotional journey. So it was just like I needed to write about it. So yeah, everything that makes me feel intense emotions, I just write about it, whether it’s real or not.
SM: Before music, you imagined being an astronaut or a screenwriter. Do those versions of you still exist in your work now?
Avril Jensen: If I had one dream, it would probably still be that [being an astronaut], like, what do you mean I could go in space? But I’m not built for that, I want to throw up when I spin once, so yeah. But I write a lot about stars and space; the universe takes a lot of space in my music, I just think it’s probably the most beautiful thing. And the screenwriter part, I haven’t really given up on it. I’d really like to direct, make TV shows, movies; it’s still one of my goals.
SM: Your music often leans narrative rather than strictly autobiographical. Do you blend your own experiences into those fictional worlds?
Avril Jensen: It really depends. I’ve written some really, really honest songs that are exactly how I felt, and they’ve definitely been the hardest to put out. Because it’s like, I don’t want my parents to hear that (laughs).
I think that’s also why I like to write about things that haven’t really happened to me; it’s a way of not being super vulnerable. I definitely mix fake stuff with my actual life, because it’s way easier to show the world. But the songs that are exactly how I felt, those are the ones I’ve had the most emotional feedback on. People come to me and say, ‘this song makes me cry every time.’ So, I’m learning to do more of that.
SM: Do you find your emotional honesty shifts between writing in French and English?
Avril Jensen: My French EP is definitely more vulnerable, but I think it’s more about the timing. While I was writing it, I was already on this journey to try to be more vulnerable.
Writing in French and English definitely changes the way I write; the words sound different, so naturally, that changes a lot of things.
SM: Do you feel like you’re writing as two different artists depending on the language?
Avril Jensen: I mean, kind of, because the language not only changes the lyrics, but it also changes the music that works with it. Even if I translated a song, I don’t think the beat would fit; the whole song would be different whether it’s in French or in English.
SM: You’ve resisted being placed into one genre. Does that feel limiting to you?
Avril Jensen: I started writing songs when I was so young. I was really looking for what kind of music I liked. For a long time, I was really against labels. I like the idea that it’s hard to categorize my music. But now I’m figuring out more and more the direction I want my sound to take.
For my French EP, I worked with one guy, and we work super well together. He understands exactly what I’m trying to make. I think I’m getting closer to condensing everything I like into one sound, and that’s been a journey.
SM: Your album Is Any of This Real? feels like a question more than a statement. When did that question first appear for you?
Avril Jensen: My favourite emotion is nostalgia. The working title for the album was Girlhood. I wanted it to be about missing childhood, when everything seemed so simple. But then in the song ‘why,’ there’s a lyric: ‘is any of this real?’ I thought it just encapsulated everything. It’s something I ask myself all the time, sometimes I just sit there and think, ‘damn, I’m alive right now.’ Ultimately, I’m just trying to say I’m so lost, and I think that’s super cool. The last lyric of the album is ‘no one cares. Who would have guessed.’, which kind of answers the question.
It is that deep, but it’s fine that it is that deep.
SM: Sonically, were there textures or sounds you kept returning to while making the album?
Avril Jensen: I think I was trying to find the balance between acoustic and electronic music. I love a good synth, I love a mix of acoustic guitar and trap drums. I think the best songs are that perfect balance of electro-acoustic.
There’s a song called ‘I miss you’, and that one is probably the most accurate to what I’m trying to do. It’s acoustic, but there’s also so much going on; a lot of sound design.
SM: Were there artists you kept returning to while making the album?
Avril Jensen: The Beatles are a huge inspiration in so many ways. And Billie Eilish, I have to mention her, I’ve been listening to her since I was like 14. Seeing her release music at such a young age, it just made me feel like, ‘oh, you can do this.’ So, she definitely influenced me.
SM: You mentioned earlier that your dad has been involved in your music, what has that collaboration looked like over time?
Avril Jensen: My dad is a musician; he has a studio at his house, so when I first started, I made all of my music with him. He was doing everything and teaching me at the same time. But then I wanted to work with other people because we make completely different music. So we work together less now, but every time I have to record a guitar, I’m going to him. He’s my guitar guy for sure.
SM: What are you most excited about right now, and what can we expect next?
Avril Jensen: I’m really excited about doing shows. I have one coming up at the Drake Underground in Toronto. I also have a single coming out that I really like. And for the first time, I’m going to take time to really write a whole project from A to Z, maybe like a concept album, something that works as a whole.
SM: Final question, your Instagram bio says ‘Nathan Fielder fan account’ so I have to know… what’s your favourite Nathan For You episode?
Avril Jensen: Oh my god… The claw of shame episode is so good. I also love the ghost realtor with crazy priests coming over, that is so insane. Honestly, everything is just so good.
Stay up to date with Avril on Instagram.
Interview has been edited for clarity and length.