From Queer Heartbreak to Loving Friendships: Susannah Joffe Talks About Her Latest Single “In Your Room”

Photos by Alyssa Olvera

By Minna Abdel-Gawad

Susannah Joffe (she/her) is a 22-year-old independent artist from Austin,Texas who doesn't define her sound. “[My sound] changes along with who I am, and how I'm changing.” The recent University of Texas, Austin graduate recently transitioned from being a full-time student to a full-time musician focusing on the production of her upcoming EP. 

The singer grew up around music because her father, a songwriter, moved them to Austin to be closer to its vibrant music scene. “We would record little videos in the house of his songs. I would sing harmonies and then when I got to high school, I started co-writing songs with him.”

Despite being surrounded by music growing up Joffe didn’t always consider pursuing music full time. “Prior to college, music was something I did, mainly, for my dad. But once I started writing my own music I rediscovered my love for it.” Joffe said before adding “We still co-write together but I’m just also writing on my own now.”

Joffe tackles topics like heartbreak, queer identity, and loneliness in her music, which can be difficult to dissect with others. “It's really hard for me to talk about my feelings in an honest and vulnerable way, and to share hard life experiences or emotions with people in my life. So co-writing with my dad has kind of forced me to share that part of myself with him.” 

Writing and expressing herself through music didn't always come easily to Joffe, in fact, she only began during quarantine. “I was really in my feels one night by myself in the apartment and I wrote my first song.” Joffe then posted the song, “Backseat” to social media. She is a self described perfectionist when it comes to art so she was hesitant to share at first, but was overwhelmed by positive responses “so many people commented or reached out and were like ‘this is really good’ or that it was helping them with a breakup.” 

Joffe’s first EP,The Punch, was mainly focused on heartbreak, and resonated with so many listeners, with its raw, unfiltered rage and deep sadness. However,Joffe shares that “it’s been hard having that side completely exposed. In another way, it’s been really liberating to just be like ‘here's everything I’m feeling, everything I'm thinking and everything I've experienced over the last year.’ I'm bearing it for everyone to see… It's like a diary that will forever be out there in the world.”

After finding that writing about heartbreak was a deeply cathartic process, Joffe began to focus on other emotions that needed processing through songwriting. Her latest single “In Your Room” released August 10th tackles growing up and change, a homage to her three childhood best friends who she is still close to. “[The chorus] is about a specific night that I shared with them that was the peak of my depression, my substance abuse, and was just a really dark time in my life.” Joffe explains that she is doing much better thanks to the help of her support system. “The song is really about coming out of that period, because of them and with them… At the end of the day I'll never be fully okay and that's okay because I'll always have their shoulders to cry on.” 

Transitioning from writing about heartbreak was Joffe’s way of challenging herself. “It's really easy to just write about heartbreak all day long. I could probably write five albums just about heartbreak.” Joffe shifted her focus to explore what change and support meant to her, “[Before graduating] it just felt like there was this feeling in the air of so much change and uneasiness. And people feeling like time is moving too fast.” Joffe adds that “it just seemed like, there needed to be more art and music about growing up and this false narrative, that [growing up] is this great, easy, fun, coming of age.”

Joffe feels this shift in focus has opened doors for her songwriting saying “This EP will be a lot more dynamic in terms of the subjects it covers.” The EP also welcomes a new sonic era for Joffe. “I am wanting to push the boundaries a little bit more… I'm wanting to do stuff that's a little more unconventional or uncomfortable.”

Joffe explains that she has always been drawn to a more grunge and indie rock sound, taking inspiration from beabadoobee’s “Loveworm” and earlier, Soccer Mommy. Shehopes to explore this new aesthetic particularly through music videos.“The vibe that I want for the music video will sometimes inform the production I want for the song, because I want them to go hand in hand.” Joffe’s journey as a musician not only lies in the lyrics she sings but rather is a marriage of all of the arts she participates in. She grew up in the visual arts, studying film as well as drawing, and the music she makes is informed by the visuals she has in her head. “With every song I do see an outfit, aesthetic, color scheme or place.” 

The visual element of her thinking is why she is excited to direct more of her own music videos as she did with “In Your Room.” She shares there will be a melding of dynamic and strange visuals. “There's tampons, there's a synagogue, there's a marriage in the side of a carwash, there's dolls in a barber shop. There's a lot going on and it's really cool.” 

Following the release of “In Your Room” Joffe will be releasing other singles from her upcoming EP that will feature 6 songs, which she says to “keep an eye out for.” She’ll also be accompanying indie rock band Sun Room for a leg of their upcoming tour. Follow Susannah Joffe into her new era on Instagram and Spotify.