Written By Oliver Heffron
Utah-born singer/songwriter Justice Carradine took his time on his highly anticipated debut EP, What A Weird Dream, out today via Chosen Music/Atlantic Records. From the opening “Tears In My Eyes,” Carradine is unfiltered and intimate, opening up his vulnerabilities in his most polished alt-pop sound to date.
The former Vine and Youtube star, who became a viral success for his creative covers as a teenager, has fully developed his own and established his unique voice with a dynamic debut, well worth the wait. “Better Off Alone” picks up the pace with its blend of upbeat verses and show-stopping vocal melody in the chorus, with a lyrical contemplation of voluntary isolation. “What If” sees Carradine charismatically anchor a sexy late-night groove, while “How It Ends” sees Justice return to his cover roots with a unique interpolation of R.E.M.’s “It’s The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine).”
Justice sat down for a virtual interview with Nuance to talk about the long and fulfilling journey towards What A Weird Dream.
Justice Carradine has been singing to thousands of ears since he was in middle school. The Utah-born queer singer/songwriter’s passion for music started as a favorite after-school activity when he’d play and record videos to upload online:
“When I was 13, I started posting singing videos on Vine. And that kind of got me into making videos. From there, I just started making videos all the time. I would legit lock myself in my room--I’d come home from school and lock myself in my room. I’d literally just make vines or practice playing guitar or practice playing piano for days. I legit stopped hanging out with people to do that.”
Photo Credit: Brandon Phillips
The online support soon blossomed into a full-fledged fanbase, as his inventive covers of artists like The 1975, Post Malone, and Ed Sheeran amassed over 5 Million views. Justice was an online celebrity in only Junior High School, flying back and forth from his home in Utah to chase new opportunities in LA. Looking back, especially with Justice’s little brother now being fifteen, he looks back with a sense of gratitude and bewilderment:
“I started going to California for content-related things; I went back and forth a lot. I skipped 9th grade because I was in California, which is crazy to think about: me being 15 was like out in California with my friends doing whatever the fuck. Especially because I have a little brother who’s 15, and I cannot imagine him doing that. It’s just wild to me.”
Despite the life-altering success of his social media career, Carradine always saw the medium as a means to his real artistic ends. The videos were initially just an efficient and effective way to record his practice sessions and identify areas for improvement:
“I felt like it was a way for me to improve because I’d make a video and then watch myself singing, and then be like, ‘Okay, I’m gonna do this differently; I’m gonna change this; I want to sound like this; I want the video to look like that. So, I don’t think it wasn’t as much of an outlet as it was, a way for me to like work on my skills.”
After returning to Utah to graduate high school, Carradine moved to LA full-time to pursue a music career. In 2019, Justice made his Chosen Music/Atlantic Records. After a fast-paced adolescence, to say the least, Justice found himself on a trying journey of self-reflection. Transitioning into an era of his life that felt strange and new, he took time to find himself before he was finally ready to open up and create his debut project.
What A Weird Dream mirrors Carradine’s emotional journey through the recording process, starting with the visceral depiction of a panic attack in the opener “Tears In My Eyes.” Driving to California to start the EP’s month-long recording process, he experienced his first panic attack while heading through a desert canyon, forcing him to pull over at a random shopping center in Barstow and talk to his aunt on the phone. When he made it to the studio, the experience pushed him to be more vulnerable, despite how much resistance he felt to opening up about such a traumatic experience:
Photo Credit: Brandon Phillips
“That whole situation, my first time having a panic attack, inspired “Tears In My Eyes,” and that kind of set the tone for the rest of the trip because I felt like I was forced to be vulnerable. And I didn’t want to be, but my body was like, ‘No, you have to,’ like it just took over. And yeah, I think that set the tone for the whole trip and for the writing process with all the other songs and recording everything.”
Working with both supportive, talented producers on the project, including JHart (Justin Bieber, Camila Cabello), Jesse St. John, and Pink Slip on “Tears In My Eyes,” Carradine felt the courage to share his story: “It was scary for me. It was fun, but it was also scary. I worked with so many talented pupils on these songs, and I’m just really excited about them.”
He soon saw the moving impact of his honesty on the song: “having my mom come home from work, and she’s talking about the ladies from her work being like, ‘Oh my god, Tears In My Eyes is so touching, and it’s so heartbreaking.’ It’s cool to hear that, and it’s also making me see the song differently. I’m just glad you can feel things from it.”
The visualizer for “Better Off Alone,” which finds Carradine singing freely in a stunning, vast Utah landscape, illustrates his comfort in opening up to the world. The EP shares his touching coming to terms with What A Weird Dream it all really is.