From song to visual story: The creative process behind the enchanting ‘I dreamt’ music video.

Joining us today is Josie, the lead vocalist and creative force behind CHILD + the banned. Josie was born and raised in Copenhagen, Denmark, but ventured to London five years ago, where she has since resided and honed her craft. Josie's musical journey began at a young age, growing up in a household filled with music. Her early experiences playing the piano and immersing herself in storytelling ignited a passion for world-building. Josie's imaginative nature and emotional depth found expression through writing instrumental pieces, and it wasn't until her late teens, sparked by a transformative experience, that she began writing songs obsessively.

For those unfamiliar with your music, can you tell us who you are, where you’re from and about the music you make?

My name is Josie, performing with my band of 7 as CHILD + the banned. I’m born and raised in Copenhagen, Denmark, but bought a one way ticket to London five years ago and have lived here ever since. And for the music? I’m gonna say cinematic, cathartic, curious, sensual…orchestral…pop… music! 

Growing up in a musical household and starting to play the piano at a young age, how did these early experiences shape your passion for music and influence your journey as an artist?

A lot of people describe me as a world builder, and I think that probably stems from all the time I would spend entertaining myself when I was little. My parents are journalists and I’ve always loved stories and been quite emotional, so I suppose I’d communicate whatever was going on inside me by coming up with stories and re-enacting them like little dramas – often with myself as only witness to the performance. I’d write small scores on the old piano in the living room that would accompany my plays and build sets with props in the living room. I took my own ideas very seriously, and wrote a lot of instrumental pieces alongside playing everything from Bill Evans to Al Stewart to Schumann. But it wasn’t until my first real kiss at 18 that I started writing songs obsessively (late bloomer, I am aware) .

You recently graduated from Goldsmiths University of London, known for fostering talented musicians and artists. How has your time at Goldsmiths influenced your musical style and the way you approach your craft?

Goldsmiths has been essential to my experience of London – it was a bomb blowing my mind. It felt like I’d arrived at another planet where we were all aliens, with blue hair, ripped clothing, heavy makeup and a heightened sense of ourselves. Everyone was so different from what I knew back home. I was incredibly inspired there but I also felt there was an entire art school lingo I did not get at the start. The British art school myth is an interesting one, once people are ‘in’ they act in a very particular manner, like they’re chosen, destined for something fabulous. It’s slightly ridiculous and very enchanting at the same time. In some messed up way, I felt a bit like a stranger there – yet, at the time, it was the closest to belonging I’d ever felt.  

At Goldsmiths I met most of my band, I became part of the OMNII Collective (a collective for female and non-binary producers and engineers) – which again was mind blowing because I’d only ever seen men behind the knobs in the studios back home. The movement to bring women and non-binary people into music as more than just singers was really strong when I arrived at Goldsmiths, the environment was rebellious and truly supportive. I basically lived on campus – probably because, for most of the time I was studying, I shared a room and bed with my band mate Emma, so it was nice to be able to spend the whole day playing around in the studios where I had space.

I studied performance, songwriting, production, but also film music, arranging and orchestration. I love orchestration. Knowing how to write for an orchestra has definitely shaped my sound.

There’s a lot to be said about Goldsmiths as an institution but some of the teachers and the people I met there were incredible. Despite my degree being music, the way we were approached as students was as if we were studying fine art. Goldsmiths is a politically charged environment where you’re allowed to be conceptual and challenged to always think critically about your work – an amalgamation that has definitely shaped my way of thinking, too.  

The name CHILD + the banned holds significance, with your voice being described as still "in puberty" during your second year at Goldsmiths. Can you tell us more about the story behind your name and how it relates to your sound and identity as an artist?

Ahaha it’s a loooong story. In fact, we were already gigging as CHILD + the banned before the phoniatrics specialist concluded that my voice was stuck in this peculiar state of puberty – which is not at all normal, this usually changes for girls when they’re between 12-15 – and here I was in my early twenties with vocal chords like a kid! It’s so weird!  

I have always been terrified of growing up because I’m scared of being restricted, of being defined I suppose. The name CHILD + the banned was born over multiple chapters but I guess the music often revolves around themes of innocence lost and regained in these perpetual circles. When I was younger, I had some years of being very ill and not attending school, and all this time spent on my own definitely expanded and solidified my inner world. When I write today, I find myself revisiting this time as a point of reference; the loneliness and existentialism I was confronted with, formed me as the character I am today.  

Your debut single, "I dreamt" was accompanied by a captivating music video directed by Mathias Broe. Can you share the inspiration behind the song and the creative process of bringing it to life visually?

Another long story haha! My life was nothing but water tanks for a year! Water tanks and breathwork training! My record for holding my breath is 4 min 49 secs, very proud of that as you can tell…

Mathias is like the new Lars von Trier of Scandinavian cinema – but queer. I guess he must have heard something in the song, in I dreamt, and in me. He’s very sought after and his work is incredible. I’m very lucky to have worked and still be working with him on different occasions. Initially, I think I recognised a tone of voice that ran through his films and in my music, too: this vein of fantastical coming-of-age. I just reached out to him on instagram. I didn’t really know how big of a thing he was – the blessing of being outside the Copenhagen clique! – but we instantly clicked the first time we met and the whole process was just like that, filled with faith in one another and no need to explain. We just get each other.

I produced the video together with Nicolaj Springborg and Sophie Rosendahl. Let’s just say that it took a whole lot of good people to make this video, and a whole lot of hustling and defiance. The Royal Danish Theatre lent us the water tank, which was stored away in a huge warehouse. We did so many semi dangerous and mad things during that shoot. That’s the magic of independent production – everyone just comes together for the love of it and with a desire to make something really special. When you let a bunch of kids into a room without any grown-ups to tell you ‘no’, it can either go really wrong or create something spectacular. In our case, I think we achieved the latter.  

Mythological imagery seems to be a recurring theme in your music. How do you use these symbols and references to convey your artistic message and create a distinct atmosphere in your songs? 

From September to November 2022 we released three singles a month apart. We called it ‘The Snake Trilogy’ because each of the songs slithers in and out of ideas of the feminine: the “girl who knows too much”, the femme fatale, the witch, the powerful feminine – and the fragile. Yet never resting in any of those positions.  Writing and producing those songs – Chess, You Don’t Own Me, Vampire Man – was like playing dress-up with the feminine mythology.  

Femininity is confusing to me, it has always been. But playing with it is somehow liberating. I see other artists in our local scene doing similar playful experiments, especially in art and fashion. A designer like Michaela Stark, who makes body-morphing corsets, is a strong example.

Women have been subject to so many constricting roles and ideas through history, we still are. But all these preconceived ideas of the feminine carry a blessing in disguise: the powerful possibility of subversion.  

Your performances are known for their emotional depth and vulnerability. How do you navigate the challenges of expressing such intimate emotions on stage, and what do you hope listeners take away from your live shows? 

That’s very kind of you to say – I never really know what a show is going to be like but I always aim for us all to be present with each other and with the crowd. The best thing that can happen on stage is reaching a state of self annihilation, where you’re just channelling energy, channelling the music. Together with the band, together with the audience.  

On stage, a certain level of emotional vulnerability is desirable, but you don’t want to be so into yourself that there’s no room left for the audience to sense their own feelings. When I’m facing a crowd, it’s like this golden ball of energy manifests between us – floating a few metres in front of my gaze. I can mould this energy, I can move it around with my mind. But it’s very delicate – if I try too hard to control it, it shatters to the ground.

I don’t have any particular agenda to convey through performance. But of course, it’s very giving to hear people expressing that the music took them on a journey of their own, that it touched them. At the end of the day, connection is the finest thing music can achieve.

Visual aesthetics play a significant role in your music, with Jakub Gessler capturing your universe through photography and visual art. How does visual imagery enhance your music, and what do you hope to convey through these visual elements?

That is correct, Jakub shot the visuals for The Snake Trilogy: we shot three different visual universes in one day – killer team! For You Don’t Own Me, I was hanging in ropes suspended from the ceiling like a puppet (I’d never tried this before, by the way). For Chess, I cuddled a ball python (never tried that before either). And for Vampire Man, I was dancing around like I’d been possessed by a demon (this, I do do quite often, though).

Most of the time, songs arrive in my head as complete stories, born with a visual expression attached to them. It’s all part of the same idea. Visual representation is powerful for sure but I don’t have any agenda as such. It’s just the way I think.

What do you love right now?

Volcanoes. In my eyes, they are nature and human, birth and apocalypse in one single phenomenon. They are beautiful.

What do you hate right now?

Hate is a strong word. I don’t hate anyone or anything, really…

Having said that, I do find myself having an unexplainable aversion towards ‘The Idol”, without ever having watched the show?? It’s completely irrational. I think it’s because everyone’s loving it or obsessing over it for some reason, and this makes me want to oppose the mainstream haha! But also, it just frustrates me how Vanessa Paradis – who is Lily Rose Depp’s mother – is such an incredible French singer with a voice full of character, I’ve always adored songs like “Joe le Taxi” and “Be My Baby”, I’d play them over and over again on my iPod when I was little. And then I hear the soundtrack to The Idol and I don’t know if she’s doing it on purpose (to be fair, I hope she’s acting) but Lily Rose’s voice is either super bland or drowned in Melodyne, I don’t know… rather than despiteful it just makes me feel sort of hopeless and sad… apparently the show is full of scenes where The Weeknd is fucking her in the studio bla bla bla, and I’m just like: Why??? Neither the artist or the feminist in me gets how this show is supposed to be groundbreaking. But perhaps I should watch it before I start disliking it with such passion haha!

Looking ahead, what can fans expect from CHILD + the banned in the future, and are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you're excited about? 

You know what, I’m very happy to be asked this question right at this time – because there’s actually so much in the pipeline right now and I cannot wait for us to share the new chapters of the CHILD + the banned chronology with the world!  

We’ve just released a remix of I dreamt together with the epic Haus Wife (listen here). In July and August, we’ll be shooting projects for our upcoming releases (including our debut EP!!). I’m sessioning with some amazing creatives these days including producer/engineer Isabel Gracefield from RAK Studios (who’s worked with everyone from PJ Harvey to Dua Lipa) and Lloyd Wayne (who recently co-wrote Gretel Hänlyn’s debut album together with Mura Masa and Alex from Jadu Heart). I feel so incredibly lucky to get to work with people who love the CHILD + the banned music and the project overall, and who want to work together for that exact reason – not because of money or contacts or whatever. It’s simply because they are passionate about making the best music and the best art. I respect all the people I work with so much and I feel in awe that – despite being a hundred percent indie – the band and I get to work with such talents.

I’m a firm believer in collaboration and people elevating each other through creativity. Which is funny because creativity was a very lonely practice to me for many years. If creativity is a magnetic field, I feel like I’m in a potent place right now, suspended between two poles: fine, curious solitude and a sensual desire to break out of my shell. Let’s see where that takes us…