Jordy first went viral with “Long Distance,” a pining pandemic anthem that established him as the queer king of heart-on-sleeve love songs. But five years later, as he enters his thirties and embraces his single era on his stocking taking fourth album, In Retrospect, he’s leaning into the one emotion he was previously afraid to express: anger. And it feels good.

“There’s been heartbreak songs that I’ve written on my past records, but it’s not always easy for me to be like, ‘I’m fucking pissed and I want to say that and I want to be mad!’ I think being mad is uncomfortable for a lot of queer people,” he admits to Licorice Pizza Records’ LPTV. “I had to get that out of my system. And then slowly but surely, I was met with a lot of self-reflection and life moments that come with entering a new decade. It kind of organically shifted, but I feel like there is no album that has felt as relevant to me by the time it’s out in the world as this one.”

In Retrospect’s songs, while relatable and open to interpretation, were inspired by specific — or, as Jordy puts it, “niche” — moments in the pop singer-songwriter’s life. Two of the most virulent tracks, “God Complex” and “Bad Sex,” chronicle his soured professional relationship with a music-industry narcissist; “Stop Texting My Friends” is about awkward boundary-crossing in the digital age; “Little Distractions” is about his vaping addiction; and the most relatable track of all, “Normal People” explores the dreaded “quarterlife-crisis” that probably every unmarried over-30 listener, regardless of sexuality, has experienced at one time or another.

Jordy who just dropped the frothy new single “IDKW” this week, is still wearing his heart on his glittery sleeves and feeling all the emotions — “I’m sensitive as fuck and I cry and I’m a sensitive boy,” the self-described “girls’ gay” declares —  even if his intensity and vulnerability sometimes makes listeners (or the people he writes about!) uncomfortable.

The man is an open book —  and an also a proud book nerd — with a knack for first-person storytelling. In the LPTV video above and Q&A below, he opens up like never before about the pros and cons of going viral; being bullied as a kid; experiencing his “gay awakening” on Chat Roulette; bonding with his macho father over Avril Lavigne; and the toxic relationships, personal and professional, that inspired In Retrospect. Plus, he clears up any rumors that he’s that French baby one-hit wonder from 1992 (his full name is actually Jordan Shulman), and he recommends some of his favorite books and authors. There’s a lot to learn from his page-turning interview.

LPTV: This might be a weird way to begin our interview, but when I was initially pitched you, I saw “Jordy” in the email subject header and thought it was that singing French baby making a comeback. I don’t know if you’ve ever gotten that before.

JORDY: Oh, I really need to post a video about this at some point,,,

So, you know who I’m talking about?

I very much know what you’re talking about! Because I get a lot of comments online, like, “Oh, you’ve grown so much! I loved your song back in 2000.”

I think it was the ‘90s. This kid was French and about age 4, and his song translated in English to “It’s Tough to Be a Baby.” He still holds the record for the youngest artist to ever have a No. 1, because he topped the chart in France. I just went down this rabbit hole when I was researching you.

I really hope to meet him one day. He’s not that much older than me.

It would kind of be funny if you started a rumor that you are that guy, coming out of retirement. Anyway, I’ll admit that’s what got me to open the email. So, I came for Jordy the French baby, but I stayed for you.  And this kind of sets up our conversation, because you made In Retrospect while you were turning 30. You’re entering a new life phase in your career and in your life. You’re growing up! Your past music focused mostly on relationships, but this one is more about embracing your single era and finding yourself. What were you going through while making this album?

I was coming out of a really toxic professional relationship, low-key, and that was really tough. I think a lot of artists go through that with team members and people that they feel like a loyalty to, but ultimately they know that it’s just not healthy. That took a lot out of me. It was kind of like a long-term professional relationship, so saying goodbye to that was honestly a huge step forward for me.

You probably don’t want to say who it was, but was it someone very powerful who you didn’t want to cross, that kind of thing?

I guess in my eyes. It wasn’t some crazy industry mogul, but it was someone I worked really closely with from the beginning of my career. So, you grow together and it becomes this really intimate, close-knit relationship. There were a lot of highs, but unfortunately, the lows were outweighing the highs. And so, I just had to make a choice. Then I went on tour to promote my last album and by the time I was done with tour, I was like, “I’m back in reality.” And then I had to figure out what was next. I was brought back to L.A. and it was quiet and I was like, “All right, who am I?” I needed to process everything that just happened.

Everything happened so quickly, so I immediately started writing some angry breakup-esque songs; I had to get that out of my system. And then slowly but surely, I was met with a lot of self-reflection and life moments that come with entering a new decade. It kind of organically shifted, but I feel like there is no album that has felt as relevant to me by the time it’s out in the world as this one. I feel like I’m currently going through a lot of what feels like quarterlife-crisis feelings, and a lot of these songs really, I feel, portray that.

So, this album was kind of initially going to be a fuck-you record?

Totally. I was like, “Maybe this is an EP.” And then the songs just kind of came and I was like, “There’s a story here. There’s an arc here.” And I wanted to tell the full story. And so, it turned into a full-length project.

The specific song that’s about this industry person is “God Complex,” right?

Yeah, that and “Bad Sex.”

Which is not about having bad sex with them, but wishing bad sex upon this person.

Which I think is badass. If you’re in the mood to hex someone, I have a song for you!

A lot of people would relate to both songs, because they’re open to interpretation. People probably assume it’s about an ex.

I did somewhat channel it in that way. … The relationship felt so niche. But I think it represented a lot more and reminded me of things about myself that a lot of people would discover after a romantic relationship ending. But even in “God Complex,” it’s not even that romantic. It’s just like, “I committed myself to you for so long” —  that could be a friend, or it could be a family member. A lot of us have these weird relationships in our life that aren’t always romantic, but that play a huge role in who we are.

Didn’t you and this industry person go to couples therapy, or some kind of joint therapy? Metallica and Aerosmith have gone to therapy together. There are therapists who specialize in band relations and that sort of thing.

I’m going to mostly plead the fifth on that one! But I also think that it’s cool to recognize that being in a band or being an artist and having a team, it’s like we’re all trying to… my music is so personal to me. It becomes this really intimate thing where someone is alongside you for this journey when you’re writing together, when you’re working together. When things start to crack, it can feel so intense.

This is interesting, because there is some palpable anger on In Retrospect, and while you’re known for having emotional songs and lyrics, anger isn’t usually an emotion you explore in your music. This is kind of a new thing for you.

Yeah, I would say that. I feel like anger is a hard feeling for me to express, because I get afraid that it will turn someone away or make me undesirable.

To the listener?

I guess when I’m thinking about my life, in general, in my relationships, it’s hard to express anger. There’s been heartbreak songs that I’ve written on my past records, but it’s not always easy for me to be like, “I’m fucking pissed and I want to say that and I want to be mad!” I think being mad is uncomfortable for a lot of queer people. I think it’s uncomfortable for a lot of women.

I was about to say that. When Alanis Morissette did “You Oughta Know” or Kelis did “Caught Out There,” it was such a big deal that they were so unbridled and angry.

Totally. Obviously I’m not a woman and I don’t have that experience, but I think as a gay man, I’ve been affected by the patriarchy in ways too. I have trauma from when I was young. I think a lot of people feel that whether you’re queer, whether you’re a woman, whether you’re a man, no matter who you are, there are always times in life where we’re told that a feeling isn’t valid or that we shouldn’t feel a certain way. Anger for me was that. And so yeah, it felt good to get it out of my system.

But you haven’t been afraid to express other emotions in other songs of yours that have gone viral and put you on the map. When you have a song that’s very personal and very vulnerable and then it does go viral, you’re probably happy that people are paying attention, but do you ever feel too exposed, like, “Oh shit, I’ve got a million people listening to this, maybe I shouldn’t have said that”?

Yeah, that’s true. I feel virality is a whole other thing. I have a song on this record called “Normal People.”… and it’s [gotten] two different forms of feedback. Some of it is like, “Oh my God, finally a song that expresses how I’m feeling! I’m thirtywhatever. I’m fortysomething. I’m fiftysomething. I’m single, I don’t have kids, and this is a really awesome song that I relate to.” And then there’s other people where it’s like, “Men used to go to war — what has the world come to?” I know I’m all sensitive and dramatic and this is my truth. So, you’re constantly being fed so many different kinds of voices, and I think it’s taken me a long time to learn how to the noise when I need to.

It’s interesting because with “Normal People,” if you were just listening to it, maybe you would gather that I’m queer, but there’s nothing blatantly said. I’m not singing about a guy or whatever, like I do in some of my songs. Seeing people respond in that way, trying to bring me down for being emotionally vulnerable about this, reminds me that one of my “whys” in what I do — to represent what it means to be a man in a different way from what we were taught when we were younger. For me, coming into my manhood and my masculinity means wearing my heart on my sleeve and being honest about it. So many people are so uncomfortable at a man viewing the world in that way, and I just find that fascinating.

Well, sadly, one of the biggest insults a boy can get when they’re being bullied is to be told they’re like a girl: “You run like a girl, “you’re a sissy,” “you’re a pussy,” and worse slurs than that. Why is the worst thing you can tell a male person that they seem female?

Because they’re misogynistic. It all comes down to that, honestly. It’s like a hate towards femininity. I’ve always felt super-grounded in my gender identity and I very much identify as a man, and simultaneously I’m sensitive as fuck and I cry and I’m a sensitive boy. I’m a Pisces!

Were you bullied as a kid because were you a “sissy,” basically because you were not macho enough?

Oh, yeah. I was called “gay” before I even knew what gay was. The first mean thing someone said to me in first grade was “you sing like a girl,” because I was the lead role in the school musical. It was called The Cheese Stands Alone, and I was the cheese.

I didn’t know that song was from a musical.

Well, I think it was written into an elementary production. It was about a cheese who becomes friends with a rat, and one day the rat ghosts him and he’s like, “Why did you ghost me?” And at the end you find out it’s because the rat is lactose-intolerant.

This is a metaphor for a lot of avoidant things. The rat was an avoidant!

No, literally! And the cheese was so anxious-attachment. I was like, “Love me, rat, please!” Funny enough, the guy who played the rat has directed many of my music videos and is an incredible filmmaker out in L.A., which is just hilarious. I’ve known him longer than basically anyone I’ve ever worked with.

But the fact that you were the role of the cheese…. you played someone who was alone and ghosted and abandoned…

It was literally foreshadowing of my life! Which is strange. Honestly, wow — I’m having a moment right now! But someone said I sang like a girl in first grade. And then elementary and middle school was tough. I feel like it’s tough for so many people. Lots of verbal abuse, physical abuse.

Like, people beating you up?

Yeah. There was a little bit of that. I always try to downplay it because I’m like… I don’t know, that’s just how I process. But yeah, there was a bunch of shit. But high school was a lot better for me, because I went to a high school that really funded the arts and there was an incredible choral and theater program. I mean, there was still stuff that went on in high school, but I came out in high school. And once I came out, I found that people wouldn’t taunt me as much. Because if they were to look at me and be like, “You’re gay,” I’d be like, “Yeah. I am.” It becomes less of an insult when you own it.

It took away their power, because they didn’t get the reaction they wanted.

Totally, totally. There’s a song on this album called “I Still Do,” and by the end of the record, I’m looking inward a lot with where I’m at with being single and not having kids, and going in and out of feeling addicted to certain substances and all this stuff. And then at the very end of the record, even though I’m saying I’ve grown, I’ve evolved, I’ve learned, there are still moments where the younger me comes out and I still want someone to look at me and just be like” “You’re lovable, you’re desirable, you’re beautiful.” I want to hear that sometimes still. I just wanted to acknowledge that.

Does that come from that feeling that a lot of us have, of wanting to be accepted and liked, or does that come from you trying to fit in with these popular macho boys who beat you up and called you names?

Absolutely, I think it’s a mixture of that. And my dad was always… he was great, he was so accepting of me, but he was very into sports. And I tried sports for a long time and it just didn’t really work. I was somewhat good at tennis, I will say, but that was the only sport I was pretty much remotely good at. I think there were innate parts of me that still wanted to at least bond with him over certain things, but funnily enough, I feel like we found common ground in Avril Lavigne. That was my first concert that he took me to, because I was obsessed with Hillary Duff and the Spice Girls and Michelle Branch and Avril Lavigne. My dad was very into classic rock, but I never loved classic rock as a kid; I was more into the pop stuff. Avril was where we met in the middle, because it was giving the rock, it was punk, and I was obsessed with it too. So, that’s kind of where we had our beginning bonding.

Does Avril know this story? Did you ever get to tell her?

I did meet her at the iHeart Radio Awards in 2022. Oh, I’ll never forget it. I mean, in those moments, I knew she was overwhelmed. There was so much going on, but I was like, “You were my first concert! I’ve loved you my whole life!” And she was like, “Thank you.” It was really sweet.

I’ve interviewed a lot of queer male artists who’ve said the first artists they fanboyed hard for were female artists — Britney, the Spice Girls, Lady Gaga, Carly Rae Jepsen, et cetera. But a lot of straight men won’t admit to liking those artists; they’ll claim their wife or girlfriend dragged them to the concert. Same thing with gay male pop artists like Adam Lambert or Troye Sivan.

My immediate thought is a lot of queer men have found safety in women. At least for me, I would label myself a “girl’s gay.” My closest friends tend to be more women than men. I love my gays, you know who you are! I have my gays and I have my straights, even; they’re important to me too. But I think I found a lot of safety in women when I was a kid, especially doing theater. All the girls were like, “You’re so cute and we love you,” and I felt very embraced by them. And I think a lot of women love a non-threatening queer man who also feels like a different kind of space.

However, I think a lot of straight male artists have it in the bag: the fandom, the obsession, the Harry Styles of it all. Sometimes as a gay male artist, it’s hard for me to know who exactly I should really be targeting — because you’re right, gay men have an easier time stanning female artists than stanning a pop gay male artist. I think maybe it’s because looking at a gay male artist is more of a mirror, and maybe that’s uncomfortable sometimes. And then on the other hand, I do have a lot of women that listen to my music as well, but I think it’s different than being a heartthrob straight guy.

But sometimes with straight male heartthrobs over the years, whether it’s Justin Bieber, any boy band, or even any group with a large female fanbase like Def Leppard or Duran Duran, straight men and boys didn’t want to admit liking those artists. And straight men also disparage female artists sometimes. There’s this inherent misogyny where if girls really like it, it must not be as good. Like having a lot of female fans discredits you. Which is bullshit, of course.

Men are afraid to be gay and afraid to be bisexual. I’m going to be honest. I think even Heated Rivalry has brought up such an interesting conversation, because of all the girls whose boyfriends are like, “I don’t want to watch that!” It’s like, “Let’s talk about why you don’t want to watch that.” Yeah, if you go to a Harry Styles concert, maybe you’re afraid that you might look at Harry Styles and be like, “He’s a handsome dude.” … I think it’s just insecure men afraid that some sort of feeling is going to be sparked by watching something like that.

You said you came out to your friends in high school. From what I’ve read, it seems like you had a very accepting upbringing, with your mom in particular. Did you have a softer landing than a lot of queer kids have had when coming out?

Totally. My mom and dad and my siblings, everyone was great. I feel really fortunate for that — beyond. I can’t even express my gratitude enough. I think it’s a part of the reason why I feel so comfortable wearing my heart on my sleeve and being who I am authentically.

And as you mentioned, a lot of your songs do make it clear that you’re singing about a male love interest. You’re not vague about that, when even a lot of gay male artists still don’t do that.

Yeah. It’s funny, because when I was young and listening to “One Less Lonely Girl” by Justin Bieber, I think Justin Bieber was hounded by the press in different ways, but it was never like: “How does it feel to be heterosexual and singing about girls? What is that like?” [Being gay] is so much of my artistry, which I’m so proud of, and of course I want to be a voice for the community. But I think it is wild how much of the conversation does revolve around the fact that I’m gay.

Sorry to bring it up!

Oh no, no, no! It’s one of those things where it’s very much a part of being a queer artist. I think we talk about it because it’s who we are. And it is important to be loud about it, because I think people want to see someone who is being honest about their identity and being proud of that. It’s a very interwoven part of my artistry. But I think it’s interesting when straight artists just make albums and write music, and [their sexuality is] not something they really discuss.

I know you did a song with David Archuleta, who couldn’t have had a more opposite experience from yours. He didn’t come out, at least publicly, until the age you are now.

I think everyone is on their own path. It’s funny because I look up to David in so many ways, like, “You carry yourself in such a confident way. How can I emulate more of your energy?” His whole journey is commendable. What he felt as a kid was probably just so intense, and his book is incredible and he’s amazing. When we wrote our song “Give You the World,” which was on his EP, we wrote about something that we both very much related to; we were connecting over this feeling. It reminds us that we all have different experiences, but we ultimately come together and at the core of it, we’re all people. Every queer person’s story is different. Everyone’s family dynamics are vastly different. Some people are not as fortunate as I was, where I could share that with my parents and not be kicked out of the house. I will forever feel super-grateful for that. With my music, I’ve wanted to offer support and love to the people that didn’t get that. Let my music guide you through these hard times. That’s another reason why I do it. I want people to have an easier time.

Do you get a lot of feedback like that from fans saying music helped or saved them?

Yeah, and I think it’s always crazy when I see people getting tattoos of lyrics. … There’s always a surprise at a show where someone’s like, “Look at this!” and I’m like, “Whoa, that’s crazy.” But I also love getting messages from couples — like my song “Long Distance,” which was a huge part of my coming up during the pandemic, reached a lot of people. When people say, “This was our song because we were long-distance and now we’re married,” that’s the most beautiful thing ever. That makes me so happy.

There is a good story behind that song, but before we discuss that… didn’t you come out on Chat Roulette?

Sort of. Before I came out when I was 15, I met a boy in a chatroom on Chat Roulette and we became friends on Facebook and we were messaging each other. And I left my Facebook logged on my mom’s computer…

Was there maybe a subliminal part of you that wanted her to find out, so you sort of “accidentally” left Facebook open on purpose? Was there even some part of you that felt relief when your secret was discovered?

Probably. I don’t know when I would have decided to tell them on my own accord, so the fact that’s how it happened… who knows what would have happened if it didn’t.

Did you stay in touch with the Chat Roulette guy?

OK, and then Long Distance” happened. That song was inspired by someone else you met online, many years later. It’s kind of an epic story,

Well, I truly was just really crushing on someone and he was on the East Coast and I was on the West Coast. It was on Instagram.

And you slid into his DMs, or vice versa?

Vice versa. I saw that DM and I was like, “All right, I’m there!” We just started messaging. It was pandemic times. We were all locked at home.

But you actually ended up traveling to meet this guy during the pandemic.

I did! I wrote the song before going, and I played it for him when I was there and he loved it. We had a beautiful weekend, and then I went back to L.A. and it basically just fizzled out. He was like, “I don’t know if I’m into this,” and I was like, “Oh, great.” Then I was kind of bitter towards the song and I didn’t plan to release it, but maybe a couple months later I put it on TikTok. I think the timing was perfect, because everyone was long-distance from family and loved ones and romantic partners; nobody could travel, so I think it resonated.

Was this in 2020?

It was actually 2021.

OK, so the world was starting to open up a little bit.

Honestly, not even. We weren’t there yet. There was no vaccination yet. It was earlier 2021. I double-masked [on the plane] and had a face shield, and it was so intense! I probably shouldn’t have done that, so don’t cancel me, but I did.

No one’s going to cancel you. You were protected.

I tried my best. I remember the weekend being really beautiful and sweet, and it really did change my life. So, thank God for him. I have not spoken to him in many years, but I hope he is well.

He must know that the song came out and became a hit, because you’d played it for him. He never reached out to be like, “Hey, congrats”?

Oh, he did.

In a nice way?

Yes. I don’t know if I wanted to hear from him, but I believe his messages were kind.

That’s good. You said you were a little bitter about the song. Did you change any of the lyrics once this relationship didn’t work out?

No, I kept them the same.

So, when this very vulnerable song went viral, did you have mixed feelings about everyone hearing it?

Oh, I was so excited! I was so happy. It felt so exciting and pivotal and big. … These were songs that just came from me writing with my friends and being real and being a crushy, sensitive Pisces, and suddenly millions of people are like, “Holy shit, I love this.” It’s very wild. … Being championed for vulnerability and being emotional and sensitive in my lyrics was validation of who I am. [It made] me think I’m not as alone as I thought. A lot of us feel the same.

The cheese does not stand alone!

The cheese does not.

The cheese has lots of friends. The world is a charcuterie board of multiple delicious, interconnected cheeses! So, we were talking about the industry person that inspired “God Complex” and some other songs on In Retrospect, but did that person or anyone  else in the industry ever say, “Hey, maybe be a little less gay or a little less emotional”? Did anyone warn you that you were narrowing your audience or you’d have a “niche” audience if you sang songs about male love interests? I’ve interviewed other gay male artists who definitely were advised to tone it down.

No, I did not get that from one that person; that was not an issue. But very, very, very early on in my career, I played a show and got feedback from an older man in the industry that felt not right. It felt not good. I think it was probably a mixture of me feeling insecure, but he said things that were honestly… they were homophobic. That was tough. But for the most part throughout my career, any team member that has been around me, any label, honestly, has not told me, “Don’t be this.” They’ve let me be exactly who I am.

With that homophobic old-school industry person, what did you say to him then? And have you ever had a chance to go, “See, you were wrong! Ha ha, screw you”?

We reconnected a year or two later, and I feel like he kind of apologized in his own way. It was nice. He acknowledged that he could have worded things a little differently. I think he’d been trying to tell me to talk less, like with stage banter or when introducing each song. Well, this was in 2018. This is my first show ever. … It came out in a way that felt like a little microaggression.

I want to pivot and talk about another new song that could be called “niche,” because it’s about something very specific. “Little Distractions” could be about an addiction to anything — drugs, alcohol, love, sex, gambling, shopping — but I don’t know if there’s ever been a song about vaping.

“Little Distractions” is one of my faves. At the point I wrote the song, I was ready for a change. … It’s funny, because you wouldn’t really know from the lyrics. The week that I wrote “Little Distractions” was the week I wanted to put the vaping habit behind me, because it felt like it was taking over my everyday in a way I really didn’t like. It represented more than just the nicotine addiction. I think it’s like a fucking pacifier. It created such a cycle of anxiety. You think you’re helping your anxiety, but it’s making it worse. I was getting anxious at the repercussions of what it would do to my body. I was struggling that week, and we wrote a really beautiful song.

Are there any other In Retrospect tracks you’d like to discuss?

“Stop Texting My Friends” was another fun, cathartic song to write. It came from, again, a very specific situation where this person was inserting themselves in other parts of my life. It felt like they were trying to make themselves relevant in my life somehow by reconnecting with my friends and my family. I think we’ve all felt that before, where we get out of something and we’re like, “Wait, that person texted you? Why did they text you?” It’s a yucky feeling.

But it’s a great song title. I see that title and immediately chuckle and want to click on that. Just like me clicking on the Jordy email.

One hundred percent.

I know you’re a big book nerd, so I’d love to discuss literature with you while I have you. You need to have your own book club, like Dua Lipa has.

That’s next on my list!

What books have you been reading lately?

Oh my God. I’m reading the craziest book right now. It’s fucking insane. It’s called Piranesi. It’s by Susanna Clarke and it feels like you’re reading this very backroom-y fantasy novel. It feels like this back room meets a castle of these endless halls where the ocean kind of seeps through, and there’s statues that line the halls, and it feels like this very fantasy world. Basically, when you hit the halfway point, something clicks and you almost feel confused by what you’re reading, until it all comes together. … People would consider it fantasy; some people would consider it a thriller; some people would consider it sci-fi, potentially. It is so good. It is so crazy. I’m going to finish it tonight.

Is fantasy the genre you gravitate towards, or do you read all genres? Do you read nonfiction less than fiction?

I read fiction way more than nonfiction. I do love to read memoirs, but I read a lot of fiction.

What are some of your favorite memoirs?

I love Jeanette McCurdy’s memoir, I’m Glad My Mom Died. I read [Jeannette Walls’s] The Glass Castle when I was younger, and that’s a really heartbreaking memoir. David Archuleta has an amazing memoir called Devout. I have Lena Dunham’s memoir  [Famesick] on my shelf. But I love fiction. I love thrillers. I love historical fiction or just literary fiction. I don’t tend to really read heavy romance or fantasy typically, so even what I’m reading now is a little bit outside of my comfort zone, but I love a page-turner. I’m not one to be like, “I’m reading about meditation and self-love.” No, when I’m reading, I want to be sucked in and hooked on a good story with good characters.

Who are your favorite fiction authors?

I love this English author Clare Mackintosh; she writes great police procedurals and thrillers and mysteries. I love Lisa Jewell and John Mars. I think Steve Kavanaugh is fantastic. I love Kristen Hannah; she writes really incredible historical fiction. I could go on and on…

Do you think your voracious reading affects your own lyric-writing and storytelling in your songs?

Yeah, totally. I think it informs so much in what I do and how I think. And also, it’s a really great way for me to get out of my head, because I think as a songwriter and artist, you’re often so stuck in your thoughts and trying to think of something so profound to say that no one has ever said. Sometimes I’m like, “I don’t want to scroll. I don’t want to think about anything. I want to be locked in on somebody else’s story and just live there for a second.” I honestly think that that’s one of the reasons I love reading so much.

Are you going to write a book? Maybe a memoir? You have many great stories from your own life.

I’ll say… maybe!

OK. In the meantime, this was a much more interesting conversation than if I’d actually interviewed the French baby, because I don’t speak French.

Let’s get us both here [at Licorice Pizza Recrods]!  We need to find [the other Jordy] and send him a message at some point.

This Q&A has been edited for brevity and clarity.