Penny Bored, an uprising queer alternative rock and pop artist released their latest EP, I’m Bored, on September 13, 2024. Thirteen Magazine had the chance to ask some questions to Faith Alesia about their newest release, as well as learning about them as an artist who has a long and successful career ahead. 

THIRTEEN: As an introduction to Thirteen magazine readers could you introduce yourself as an artist, what genre you specialize in, and your mission as an artist?

FAITH: I would say as an introduction I am a queer artist who makes pop rock music. My mission would be just to encourage people to follow their dreams because I started this with very little experience and just figuring it out as I go. If i can do this I feel like anyone can do this. 

THIRTEEN: How did you get started in the music industry? What’s the story behind how you became “Penny Bored”?

FAITH: I actually was a concert photographer for about five years and I don’t know I just always had this dream of starting this band, I always tried to when I was in high school and it never really worked out. And then, as I started getting more involved in my local scene through photography and things like that I realized like, anyone can do this. You can learn how to sing from Youtube videos and like how to play guitar. Ask people in your community how to book a show and things like that. So, once I realized I was able to do that I was like “okay I’m the only person holding myself back from this so I just need to do it”. 

THIRTEEN: How did I’m Bored come to be as an EP? 

FAITH: My producers and I, were always writing and some of these songs lind of started a long time ago and I didn’t know if I was going to use them and then when i signed to “Open Your Ears” the first step was an EP, so we immediately went to the studio and started writing and I started pulling all of these old lyrics that I had. Working on those just inspired me to start writing some other songs and we just had so many ideas out there, we didn’t really know which direction we wanted to go into and it kind of all clicked and everything fell together. 

THIRTEEN: There’s a picture on your Instagram of you creating the I’m Bored cover art. Did you create the aesthetic and board of little items by yourself, or how did that come about? 

FAITH: I’ve kind of always been obsessed with I Spy as a kid and then I feel like I started seeing people talk about it more on tiktok. I don’t know why but it just started coming up more on my feed all the time. And I was like, I think this would be really cool art work.I’m sure it’s probably been done before, but I wanted to do it. And my twin sister actually does all the art for me, so we just go together and start constructing everything and laying down. First we didn’t even have “I’m Bored” written out in the lipstick, it was just going to be a bunch of trinkets and I was like, somethings missing, I feel like maybe we should try this, and then yeah it just all worked out. All the trinkets, some of them are just completely random things that we needed to fill the space, but a lot of them have significant meaning behind them or they are like childhood trinkets, or some of them like my grandma's jewelry is in there, so it’s really special to me. So, there is some meaning behind it.

THIRTEEN: Songs on the EP like “On Hold” are fun and very grunge. I kind of think they have a sound like Avril Lavine in a sense. Who do you find your inspiration from for your sound, growing up with music, do you have any sense of inspiration there?

FAITH: I grew up listening to Avril Lavine, and paramore, and specifically Hilary Duff’s pop punk phase, so I feel like you can definitely hear those influences. As I got older I was on My Space and Tumblr, so I found a lot of different artists from that and I feel like that always stuck with me. But now I really love Macie Peters, Chappel Roan, and Diva Duby, so just a lot of singer song-writer artists, Olivia Rodrigo. All of their music is so honest, but they're not afraid to have fun with it as well and I just think that's really inspiring. And I was like, I want to do that. I want to have fun with my music and not overthink anything.

THIRTEEN: Which song came to life first for the I’m Bored project?

FAITH: I think it was “Think of Me”. We kind of started working on that one and “Dance in Hell” around the same time. I remember “Think of Me”  had the instrumental for it and I was just sitting in bed one day and started humming the chorus melody and I was like, wait I can work with this. And then I just like went over to my computer and started writing and seeing what worked. So, I think overall “Think of Me” was the first one that really came about.

THIRTEEN: Do you have a favorite song within the EP wether it was the writing process or the ending product of the song?

FAITH: I think overall, I always struggle to pick a favorite, I think maybe “Gossip” because overall it was just a fun process from start to finish. I had my friends come in and help with the background vocals, that was really fun. The music video was fun. It was like my first time doing choreography in my videos. It sparked my love for dance again. Everyone in the video was so sweet and now were all really great friends. Just that whole process and everyone I got to work with throughout writing, recording, and the music videos, I loved it. I feel like it kind of changed my life in a way.

THIRTEEN: Is there a song you feel most connected to on I’m Bored? 

FAITH: I don’t know if there's a specific song. I feel like everything on I’m bored really captures who I am and me as an artist and I feel like each one of them really tells a different story. Lately, I feel like “Disconnected”, it’s a sad one, but I don’t know it’s been helping me a lot. And I feel like it also just showcases my songwriting and my voice a little more. I love that one.

THIRTEEN: My favorite song is “Gossip” which includes some dancing and choreography. Do you think that you will include more of your dancing into more of your projects in the future?

FAITH: I would like to. It was really fun. I definitely need to increase the amount of dance classes I go to because I need some more work. I danced for four years throughout hugh school and then I didn’t dance for ten years. So I kind of had to jump right into it, I had two weeks to learn the choreography for each one. I definitely want to incorporate more, it would be really fun. Also just like a fun pop star moment. 

THIRTEEN: How would you describe I’m Bored as a whole, musically and aesthetically? 

FAITH: I feel like it’s really sparkly, I get that a lot for some reason. It’s just really bright and bubbly and fun. I always describe it as, you know, in the early 2000’s movies where they have the montage of them dancing around in their room, getting a makeover, going shopping, I feel like my music really fits that specific era.

THIRTEEN: If there is one song you would want fans to really listen to for the whole I’m Bored experience, which one would you suggest out of the songs included?

FAITH: Probably ‘Gossip” because it has more of that pop element. But also it has that really cool guitar and the drums come in pretty heavy at the end. I feel like it’s a good balance of everything over all. And also, it’s just really fun.

THIRTEEN: Do you have any projects coming up for fans to be anticipating?

FAITH: We're always writing and I actually go back to the studio in November. For now we're just focusing on the pop up event to celebrate the release of the EP. Were having art exhibits, a lot of different photo ops, and doing like the reimagined live set. Lots of cool things. 

THIRTEEN: As an artist, as Penny Bored, What would you like to tell the world as you keep releasing and your career keeps moving forward?

FAITH: I would say, I know it sounds really cheesy, but just don’t be afraid to be yourself. At the beginning of my music career I was so worried, and sometimes I still am, so worried about what other people think and should I even be leaning into more of a pop sound, I’m just constantly worried that what if I’m doing too much or what if I’m not doing enough. But at the end of the day, if what your doing makes you happy then that’s really all that matters.