Kesha talks headlining Hoopla, reclaiming Warrior, Charli xcx, Dreamgirls, and more (EXCLUSIVE)

“I’m just ready to come bring a little chaos and do what I do best,” Kesha tells me as we catch up ahead of her highly anticipated headlining slot at this year’s Mighty Hoopla.

Chaos remains a central theme in both the singer’s music and life, it would seem. On the eve of our conversation, the singer is preparing for the release of her latest single ‘BOY CRAZY.’, a frenetic, pulsating ode to treating boys like a drug she keeps returning to for one more hit, whilst also putting the finishing touches to a setlist for Hoopla and her upcoming tour in support of new album Period.

In the background to all of this, her fans are losing their minds for reasons good and bad. A version of Period, her first album as a newly-minted independent artist, has leaked online – an occurence that has plagued the singer’s career since the very beginning. The leak has divided a fanbase, with some Animals seeking to protect their’s queen’s commercial prospects by ignoring it, whilst others fail to resist the allure of new music. Further divisions occur after it comes to light that ‘BOY CRAZY.’ and ‘JOYRIDE.’ co-writer Madison Love is also a frequent collaborator of a certain character from the artist’s past, the he-who-shall-not-be-named of Kesha lore, leading some dedicated fans to even suggest suggest they will boycott the songs.

Meanwhile, other Kesha fans are just befuddled by the star’s recent revelation, on an appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show, that she appeared in Dreamgirls (as an extra, but still). With so much at play, I was keen to sit down with this truly singular pop star to find out where her head’s at as she prepares to return to the UK to delight both Animals and casual fans alike with what is sure to be a showstopping performance on 1 June.

Hi Kesha! You’re headling Mighty Hoopla – how exciting. Can you tell us a bit about what you have in store for us?

I think it’s the first time I’m coming over there since I’ve been a free woman, so that is really exciting. There’s a whole new bitch back in town, and I’m just ready to come bring a little chaos and do what I do best.

Have you been preparing a whole new show or should fans expect something similar to your recent Coachella set?

It’s different to Coachella and Stagecoach. I’m putting together the show right now, so I haven’t landed anywhere yet because it’s ever evolving. To be honest with you, I kind of feel like I’m healing from the whole mess of the past 20 years of my life in front of the whole world. So every day, something new happens, and then it inspires something different in the show. It’s ever changing and ever evolving. I don’t even know what to tell them to expect because what it is today might be different from what it is that when I get there.

From the second I decided I wanted to do this as a job, when I was in the middle of high school in Tennessee, surrounded by people that didn’t think like me, and I was questioning my sexuality, I made a vow that if I ever got to create a community, I’d want it to be a safe space for everyone to come and be their authentic self.

You recently spoke out about feeling like you were ready to reclaim [your second album] Warrior. Might you be adding some Warrior cuts to the set list perhaps? I love a bit of ‘Crazy Kids’ myself.

God, see I love hearing that now. The past two weeks, I fell back in love with Warrior, which is so interesting. Like, a month ago, I couldn’t even stomach to listen to it. I hadn’t listened to it probably since it came out. And then one day, I decided to face my fears and listen to it, and I just was dancing and laughing and sobbing. It was so messy and so beautiful, and I realised the thing I had held so much fear towards, actually was just me. I have nothing to be afraid of, because I was a good person fighting for the same things I still continue to fight for. I’ve been that person the whole time. You know, trauma is a funny thing. It gets in your head and it gets in your body and it stays there. Now I’m so proud of that girl I was. I was fighting for all these beautiful things, even way back then, and in much more difficult circumstances.

When I can listen to it now with some space, I realised that I’ve always been like a little punk motherfucker fighting for the people that need fighting for. And I was just trying to do that while juggling a bunch of other stuff that nobody knew about. Like, that’s badass.

Do you hold such a complicated relationship with your other earlier work like Animal and Cannibal?

With Animal, it was a lot of music that I’d been working on since forever, so I had no issues energetically with that. I was also still so new and so naive to the world I was entering. It all was just exciting, and I was just happy to be there. And then, you know, more complicated things started to happen behind the scenes and more complicated emotions came up when I was performing or listening to the record, and so I just stopped listening to it.

You spoke about creating a safe space earlier, and I know you’ve always been a really politically engaged pop star so you’re probably aware that it has been a particularly challenging year for the queer community here in the UK, and especially for the trans community. What do you think is the power or role of queer festivals like Mighty Hoopla during times like these?

I think queer joy right now is… the most political thing we have is to be joyful in a time like this. It takes great strength to fight for that joy for yourself and it’s the most beautiful thing we can do, to come together as a community and hold each other in a safe space. We need each other right now.

You’ve got all this new music coming out which fans can hardly wait for, including the new single ‘BOY CRAZY.’. I see you’ve teamed up once again with Zhone and Madison Love, who you previously worked with on ‘JOYRIDE.’ which was so well received. What was it like collaborating with them?

Oh, my God, well, Zhone and I have become really close. He just totally trusts the psychosis of me making music. When I make music, it is a journey. It is a quest. We went from here to Mexico. We were trying to swim with sharks. We met a guy named Jay on Instagram and went to Cabo and drove for hours and it was just a chaotic adventure, a quest to the joy which is why I feel so protective over making a space for queer joy, because I’ve had to fight really fucking hard to find my joy again. If someone tries to steal your joy, the cuntiest thing you can do is be even more joyful.

And Madison, what was it like working with her?

We wrote ‘JOYRIDE.’ and ‘BOY CRAZY’. Yeah, she’s great.

Who else have you been working with on the album?

I worked with Pink Slip. I worked with T-pain, who I’ve wanted to work with for literally almost 20 years, I’m obsessed. I got to work with my friend Jonathan Wilson, and we made hippie disco in the woods. ‘JOYRIDE.’ was inspired by a healing journey into the woods, where I ended up naked, playing an accordion with a bunch of hippies overlooking the ocean, which then led me to teaching songwriting, which led me to Sardinia, which led me to starting an app. I’ve just been on this quest to freedom, and this album is the sound of a woman reclaiming her right to joy and the sound of freedom. I’m so excited for fans to hear it.

Speaking of your fans, it’s probably safe to say that you have some of the most protective, crazy fans out there. Do you ever fear that, with your best interest at heart, they take it too far or get it wrong?

No, I love it. As long as they keep each other safe and they respect each other, and they keep me safe and respect me and are kind, they can do whatever the fuck they want.

You also could take the title for the artist with the most unreleased music floating around the internet, ever since the early days of your career.

I don’t know where the leaks are coming from, but if you know, tell me!

I don’t, I promise! Some of that music is still so cherished by your fans. Personally, I’m a big fan of ‘Booty Call’ and ‘Lost Weekend’. Would you ever consider dusting off old demos that have a cult following behind them?

I’m open to doing whatever feels good for everybody. If they want to make enough attention, then I am all ears, because I definitely want to make you happy, and I definitely want to bring people closer to their joy, so you and all the Animals chat, and if you really need me to play a song, just make enough noise and I’ll see it on the internet. Your mother’s watching.

On the topic of music leaking in general, other artists have spoken about how violating that can feel. Is that a feeling that you share, or at this stage in your career are you just used to it?

I don’t love it, because I’m creating something that I want to give to you when it’s ready. When you know you’re working on something for years, it’s exciting to unveil it, but I also am realistic and I’m really grateful that people still care about listening to my music. I don’t know how those cheeky fuckers get it every time, but if people really need to listen to my songs early, then, like, whatever. I would prefer it if you wait for the real thing but I’m also like, we’re living in a digital age, so shit happens. I can’t be that upset about it. It’s happened since the beginning of my career. I’m not condoning it, but I mean, to be honest, I just leaked my own song to my fans, so, at this point, I’m kind of part of the problem.

Fans minds are blown at the revelation that you appeared in Dreamgirls as an extra – do you remember what scene it was ? Are you at all visible in any frame of the film?

No, it was like, the back of my hair. I remember, I was like, ‘Can you please just not tease my hair?’ And they did so much that I was supposed to come back for a second day and I was like, ‘No, they’re fucking up my hair. I’m not going back’. So I just did it for one day. I think in the movie, you see the back of my head for about 0.25 of a second.

Your recent collaboration with Charli xcx on the ‘Spring Breakers’ remix was a real treat. Charli feels like such a disciple of yours in terms of her vibe and, in some ways, her sound as well. What was it like working with her on that?

She’s always been iconic to me, the stuff her and SOPHIE were doing was groundbreaking. I’ve been such a fan of her and her attitude and her voice and her songwriting forever, but then to watch her take it to, like, global dominance was really exciting because I feel like we have similar ethos in our soul. She’s a little punk, and she doesn’t give a fuck, and she’s been doing this for a long time. She’s sick of doing it everybody else’s way which I find so inspiring.

How did that collaboration come to fruition?

We met a bunch of times and we worked with some of the same people. A. G. Cook is a friend, and Easyfun. We kind of run in similar circles, HudMo is also on my new record. It felt pretty natural. I do feel like we’re kind of like cousins. Like pop girls who are not pop girls. We’re pop girls because they don’t have a better word for us.

A. G. Cook did a remix of your single ‘YIPPEE-KI-YAY.’ Is he involved in the album beyond that?

He’s not on this one. Wait, let me think about it – I wrote so many songs it’s hard to keep track… No, he’s not on this one, but we definitely have been working and are working all the time. So keep your eyes and ears peeled.

I know you’re going on tour this summer with the Scissor Sisters. That, to me, seems like a dream pairing. What’s your favourite Scissor Sisters song?

Oh my god, yes. I’m so thrilled. Anytime I’m having a kiki, I always play ‘Let’s Have A Kiki’. It’s one of the greatest songs for a party, I think, that has ever been made. So that means that every night on tour is going to be a fucking kiki, so I’m happy. And the Venga Boys are going to be joining us at Madison Square Garden. This shit is gonna be like a celebration of freedom, and I can’t wait for it.

Kesha headlines Mighty Hoopla on 1 June at Brockwell Park, with tickets still available here. ‘BOY CRAZY.’ is available to stream everywhere now.