00:00I guess you could say like at this point in time, you know, I'm just really expressive of how much like I'm enjoying life and wanting to have a good time and owning my self-confidence and just, you know, a lot of that like just shines through in the music that I'm making now.
00:17And yeah, maybe it's like a confidence thing and a carefreeness that really is translating.
00:22And I guess you could say that is the sound right now.
00:25What is up, Essie's, auntie's and nieces today?
00:31I am so excited to be interviewing Molly.
00:33Hello.
00:35Hey.
00:36All right.
00:37So, Molly, I'm so excited because you are going to be performing at the Essence Main Stage, which is such a huge deal, as well as a GU kickback.
00:47So we're going to be talking a lot about festival, a lot about your music journey.
00:51So let's get started.
00:52So you are performing at both the GU kickback and the Essence Festival Main Stage.
00:58How does it feel to represent at such major moments during festival?
01:04Honestly, I think it's amazing, especially, you know, with everything happening in Afrobeats and like Afrofusion music.
01:12I think it's amazing that I can be here and rep like where I'm from, Ghana, and also, you know, own the spaces and such amazing platforms like this.
01:22Love it.
01:23Love it.
01:23So we have to know, what can fans expect from your performances this weekend?
01:28Are you switching up your energy from the aunties to the nieces?
01:32Like, what can we expect?
01:33I think definitely I'll give the aunties, you know, some good fun.
01:37But, you know, I think I actually haven't had the opportunity to perform for a much younger crowd just yet.
01:46So I'm excited to see, you know, how that translates and how I can also, you know, just meet them where they're at as well.
01:55Yeah.
01:55It should be a bit of a difference.
01:57Yeah, regardless, it's going to be a party with you.
02:01So I'm hype.
02:03So I have to tell you, so Essence Festival really celebrates Black culture across the diaspora.
02:09And with you being from Ghana, how does your West African background shape your sound and the way you show up in these spaces?
02:18Yeah.
02:19For me, like, I think it's always important to just show up as my best self because that's how I, you know, create a good representation.
02:29I think it just, I'm just very proud of myself in this situation because, you know, my mom is like a Ghanaian woman.
02:38And, you know, I'm doing things that we haven't really seen a lot of Ghanaian women really do before.
02:46So to me, like, it means a lot.
02:48And I'm just super grateful.
02:51Love it.
02:51Love it.
02:52So I want to talk a little bit about your sound, right?
02:56Because it kind of fuses between this really nice Afrobeat soul and a small bit of Caribbean vibes.
03:02As you were developing your sound, how did you find your signature sound?
03:07You know, I think I've always been very experimental in the way I create music.
03:16I'm always willing to try.
03:18But most of all, I'm always leading with, like, my true feelings and my true experiences in life.
03:24I guess you could say, like, at this point in time, you know, I'm just really expressive of how much, like, I'm enjoying life and wanting to have a good time and owning my self-confidence.
03:35And just, you know, a lot of that, like, just shines through in the music that I'm making now.
03:41And, yeah, maybe it's like a confidence thing and a carefreeness that really is translating.
03:46And I guess you could say that is the sound right now.
03:51Yeah.
03:52Absolutely.
03:53I was, like, very much inspired by dancehall music and Caribbean music as a whole.
03:59Yeah, that's, like, the vibe that I definitely get from you.
04:06And I think, you know, having kind of, like, boujou bantan on stage as well and then, like, shake it to the max.
04:12Like, I'm hype.
04:14I'm so excited.
04:15So what has been the most defining moment of your career so far?
04:20Um, I think so far it will be, like, the new, the latest, like, Billboard 100 entry.
04:32It's definitely, like, one of the biggest feats of, like, a Ghanaian artist on the Billboard 100.
04:40So to me, that's just, like, amazing.
04:42And I just can't wait to see how much further it can go.
04:45Absolutely.
04:46Girl, I believe that you can get to number one, okay?
04:49But also, I think it's really cool how, you know, you're reaching all these really great feats.
04:56And as you were sort of talking about your sound earlier, I meant to mention this, but I love how right now it's, like, you're young.
05:03You're just experimenting, like, seeing what sounds good, what sticks.
05:07And through that, I feel like you're really developing your signature sound.
05:11So I love that.
05:12I have a fun question.
05:14What's on your pre-show playlist that always gets you in the zone?
05:18Oh, I really love Theodora.
05:21She's from Paris.
05:22And she does a lot of, like, hype and just fantastic music.
05:26It's all in French.
05:27I don't understand any words.
05:28But the beat and the energy and the melodies, I really love.
05:32So I just go and play, like, Theodora radio.
05:35And then you have, like, a bunch of whole other, like, Chata dancehall artists playing as well.
05:40But, like, Maureen Kalash and stuff like that.
05:43I feel like this is a bit obvious, but I want to ask from you, what's the one song the aunties and the nieces should memorize before you hit the stage?
05:51I've been teasing this new one called Backy on my socials.
05:55And I have noticed, like, a few shows that I go to, some people will be singing along to the words.
05:59The full song is not out, but I do have, like, the hook and, like, a verse on my socials that they could listen to and be like, okay, we know what's coming next.
06:09So are you saying that Essence Festival is getting an unreleased song?
06:14Is that what I'm hearing?
06:16Absolutely.
06:17You may even get an extra one.
06:19Oh, okay.
06:21Okay.
06:21Yeah.
06:21My last question for you is, what's next for you in 2025?
06:27In 2025, I would hope to do, like, lots of really cool features from people that, you know, I just really admire and just really want to work with.
06:36Like, I would hope that all the success that I'm experiencing just opens the doors for me to work with other really great artists.
06:43So that's what I'm looking forward to.
06:45Absolutely.
06:46Well, Molly, thank you for chatting with me today, and all of y'all can catch Molly at the 2025 Essence Festival of Culture.
