In 2021, Madisyn Gifford released her debut EP, Learning to Exist. As implied by its title, the project consisted of introspective, coming-of-age songs that touched on Madisyn’s doubts and imperfections, which presented her as an artist who can be expressive, vulnerable, and relatable. Since then, she has continued to openly share her story through albums such as 2022’s I hate ur guts and 2023’s Sleeping on the Ceiling. Madisyn grew stronger with each record, as the lyrics got more confessional and the music became more vibrant. But in 2024, the pop artist shifted gears and leaned into the style of music that she had always wanted to make. She released “Seventeen,” an indie-folk leaning track that served as the beginning of a new chapter. While the single was different musically, it contained the same emotion and nostalgia heard in Madisyn’s previous releases. After dropping more singles in this style, Madisyn announced her new album, A Quiet Contemplation of Sunshine. Much like the new music that fans had heard, the album promised to be warm yet raw, a mature body of work that places Madisyn as the artist she has envisioned of becoming since she was a child. We recently had the honor of talking to Madisyn about the project, where she described its significance and what it means to her moving forward.
Hey, Madisyn! Thank you for taking the time out to answer these questions about your new album, A Quiet Contemplation of Sunshine. What are you most looking forward to about its release?
Thank you for having me! I think the thing I’ve been most looking forward to is having a project that I think represents me as an artist and a person so well being out in the world!
In a press release about the album, you mentioned that it’s “a dream realized from the vantage point of a young woman who once imagined this moment from her childhood bedroom.” So, how did you decide that now was the time to make this album?
I think I was just never confident enough to show up as the artist I’ve always wanted to be prior to making this record. I just valued other people’s opinions on what my music should sound like above my own, and through growing up and becoming more confident in my musicianship, I starting prioritizing my own intuition and artistic integrity instead!
What have you learned, if anything, about yourself in the process of making A Quiet Contemplation of Sunshine?
Oh gosh, too much to be able to sum up here! This record, more than anything, is a documentation of me coming into my own as both a person and an artist. Through making it, I learned the importance of hard work and doing everything with integrity. I learned to trust my instincts and my own taste. I learned to be a better guitar player and singer! I learned to play the harmonica!! The list could go on!
This album also marks a shift in your sound, which fans first heard when you released “Seventeen” last year. We last spoke around the time you released this single, so what did your fans think of the track? Did they like this new sound?
Seeing the reactions to my music since the release of “Seventeen” and also the release of the album has been the sweetest thing ever! I have never received even close to as much positive feedback on my music as I have recently, which is so cool and also affirming since I feel as though this music represents me so well!
Last time we talked, you also said this was the happiest record you ever made. Would you say that this is the favorite of your albums?
I love my other albums and projects for many reasons, but this record is most definitely my favorite. I don’t see how it couldn’t be, as it feels like a perfect representation of the music I’ve really always wanted to make!
I wanted to ask about the intro to the album, which presents as a voice memo. Did you know after recording it that you wanted it to be used as the intro, or did that idea come about later on in the creative process?
I actually recorded that voice memo with the intention of sending it to an ex of mine back in 2021 and completely forgot it existed until years later while Jared [Manierka, producer] and I were working on this album! As soon as I came across it, I knew it would be the perfect transition from my previous projects into this one!
“Contemplate the sunshine” is a line from the title track, which ties into the album title. This is a phrase I hadn’t really heard before. What does it mean to you?
I came up with that phrase because it was something that I felt like I had really been doing and focusing on in my life at the time of writing it. Growing up, I had never really liked the summer and always preferred cloudy days. I tended to lean on the side of pessimism in all my immaturity because I thought it made me “deep.” But around the time of starting this record, I was tentatively making the decision to journey toward optimism. To me, that is what that phrase means!
Along with optimism and healing, this album gets into heartbreak. You have always been open about heartbreak in your music – does it ever get any easier to sing about?
I don’t know that it gets easier for me, because the way in which I write about it has evolved so much. Obviously, on tracks like “Fast One,” I’m coming from a place of pure reaction and placing blame, but on the rest of the record, I am more so exploring all of the ways that the people from my past positively impacted me. Those sorts of songs are easy and satisfying for me to sing, but writing them could sometimes be difficult as they forced me to be very self-aware and confront a lot of things within myself, as well as unpack any resentments I was unknowingly still harboring.
Do you have any favorite lyrics on the album? Or a lyric that stands out to you?
In this very moment, my favorite lyric is probably, “Give it up for the view” followed by applause in the track, because to me, it perfectly sums up the theme of the whole record. Appreciating all of your past experiences, both good and bad, because of where they lead you and all that they taught you along the way.
Which songs are you most excited for fans to hear?
Definitely “Overpriced” and “The Colour Yellow.” I’m so proud of both my writing on those songs and also how they turned out as a whole. I have to throw the title track in there as well!
Going forward, will your future releases stay in this country-folk realm? Or do you think you’d return to pop?
I never wanna say never, but at this point, I don’t see a reality in which I would ever return to pop music. I love pop and I loved writing pop, but it was never the music I wanted to make. Although, I’m sure my writing will always hold a bit of pop influence, given that I did make it for so long during such formative years of my life.
Thank you again for your time, Madisyn. And congratulations on this album. Your voice is so lovely and it shines in new and exciting ways in these songs. To wrap things up, is there anything else you want to add or share?
Thank you so much for having me and for the kind words! I guess all I would want to say is that I am so proud of this album, and I hope it is able to bring as much joy into the lives of others as it has for me, both in listening to it and creating it!
You can listen to A Quiet Contemplation of Sunshine here.
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