Interview with LOVKN on New Music 'Silver Lining' and Album

Interview with LOVKN on his New Alternative Folk Music ‘Silver Lining’, Upcoming Album ‘In Process’, Discuss Christian Roots & More

MuzicNotez: First off, it’s an honor to be doing this interview with you, thanks for taking the time to sit down with us.

What motivated you to start creating music? What age did you begin?

LOVKN: My parents enrolled my sisters and I into a performing arts school in Phoenix. I was 11 years old when I entered the school and stayed all the way through my senior year. It wasn’t even by my own desire, to study music or anything, I suppose for my parents it just felt like a nice creative alternative to the public schools in the area – and it was still free, being a charter school. We had piano classes each day, I played the alto saxophone in the band and studied in choir. It was all classical music training. To say this school and education was unique is an understatement. Being around such talented people, students and teachers, and immersed in a culture of music, dance and drama every day was inspiring. The summer before (or after?) 8th grade, I found the old dusty classical guitar my dad kept in my closet. I dug it out, probably out of boredom, and started learning on the 3 strings it had. Before long, I learned to properly re-string it and almost immediately became obsessed with the instrument. By 9th grade I had purchased an electric guitar at Target and was practicing 3+ hours a day, taking lessons, learning how to write songs and performing at talent shows and regular gigs around town. From that season onward, I didn’t give myself any plan B’s as to what I wanted to do for a living. Music became the one pursuit.

MuzicNotez: Who were your musical influences, idols, or bands growing up that have helped mold you into the musician you are today? Or helped mold the music that you create?

LOVKN: My mom was constantly playing the classic-rock station on the car radio growing up. Between my parents and my uncle, I was immersed in the legends: Stevie Wonder, The Beatles, The Eagles, Tom Petty, Sting, Paul Simon, Elton John, Ray Charles…the list is long…but you get the point. I grew to love this music, so much so that by high school, I wasn’t even listening to that many “current” bands. It was all the classics. I remember ripping The Beatles discography off of Limewire with my friend, along with a bunch of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix. My first concert was an Eric Clapton arena show. I visually remember it. It was a spiritual experience.

Website: LOVKNmusic.com
Facebook.com/LOVKNMUSIC
Instagram: @lovknmusic
TikTok: @lovknmusic

MuzicNotez: What’s the ultimate goal you want your music to achieve, or for you to achieve in your career as a musician? Any particular message you wish to send?

LOVKN: The world can feel like an isolating and depressing place. I’ve had my fair share of doom-scrolling and getting caught up in it all. I feel that I’m not only in the business of creating, hopefully impactful art, I have the ability to bring people together through my music. This is why I love playing shows…music has the ability to unify people. I want to continue to do what I can to bring people together. My faith is an influential element of what I do. Actually, I would say that, to call it simply an “element” of what I do, boxes it in too much. It’s rather the source. One of the grateful things I’ve heard people say about my songs is, “you’ve helped give language to something that I’ve felt but haven’t known how to express”…music helps us feel seen and feel known. In a world that can feel so lonely, I see this as a significant thing. So, if my music leaves my audience feeling like they’re walking away a better version of themselves after they’ve heard my song, that is a total win for me. That makes the struggle of pursuing independent artistry worth it. I write about what I’m going through and what I see the world going through. I try to bring in a hopeful perspective – but never want to sound disingenuous or naive about it. I want my music to speak to those struggling through life, faith, identity and purpose, and feel like a warm and comforting sonic-hug, a reminder that they’re not alone and there’s still hope. I write these songs because they more or less have that effect on me personally. My wife always laughs at me for listening to my own music so much. I do it because I write these songs, first and foremost, to help myself.

MuzicNotez: What’s the greatest concert you’ve ever been to or performed?

LOVKN: The greatest concert I’ve attended was Relient K in 2022, Atlanta GA. It was best because it was the day I proposed to my wife. I made a whole trip out of it and the day ended with a RK concert. She helped me fall in love with the band and that particular night felt like we were riding on cloud nine. We got in early for the front row. They shouted out our engagement from the stage. The best concert I’ve ever performed was in a small village in eastern Germany in 2021. We played in the old Schnitzel Hall. By the time I got on stage for my little solo performance, the crowd had a few steins in ‘em and they were absolutely with me. I love touring and playing in Germany. It’s one of my favorite places to play shows. I hope to bring my new album over there at some point in the next couple years.

MuzicNotez: Your latest release is the single ‘Silver Lining’, which is a really beautiful and relatable song. What inspired this track and what does it mean to you?

LOVKN: Thanks! This is one of my favorite songs from my new album. I feel like we sonically captured something I’ve been wanting to for a long time. Lyrically, much of my new record “In Process” is about outgrowing aspects of identity that I once thought defined me and walking through the struggle of not knowing what’s left. It’s about the places I once called home no longer feeling like home. A lot of this has more specifically related to my faith and relationship to church in my country. The longer I’ve been a Christian, the more certain I’ve become of some things, but the more uncertain I feel in general. Silver Lining is a desire to not lose myself completely while in the middle of the unknown, and more or less a prayer that my eyes would stay fixed on the light beyond the present darkness.

MuzicNotez: Next, you have a single called ‘Ride or Die’, what can ya tell us about this track?

LOVKN: I remember in 2024 having a series of sobering conversations with my wife about her own personal struggle through the world’s trials and the faith. I wanted her to know that, no matter how she changes and grows through life, I will always be with her. My initial complex is to try and fix everything, this song is about learning to walk with someone with open ears and an empathetic heart, showing simple gestures of comfort, rather than trying to spew out a list of solutions. It’s about saying, even if this house burns down (representing whatever once felt like home and identity/belief changing), I’m with you ride or die.

MuzicNotez: Hard to really label your music under one genre but you’re known as a Christian artist, what does your faith mean to you and how does it guide the music that you create?

LOVKN: I’ve been labeled a Christian artist, yes. I get it. I’ve released a few full albums that are very Christian-centric. I will say, I don’t like the “christian artist” label, though. I’m just a songwriter and Christian, sometimes my songs are more specifically prayers or words to/about Jesus, sometimes my songs are about life in general. I don’t ever personally box it in or hold myself to a standard of what theme or type of song I need to produce. I don’t so much like the Christian label either, because on a practical level, I can algorithmically lump me into the Christian bubble on streaming services, which I think sometimes keeps my audience from growing much outside of that space. That has been troublesome with my new record, which doesn’t have a worship or Christian song on it, but will still get pushed onto playlists next to KLOVE or CCM artists. So it’s up to my audience to share the music and put it on playlists for other folks to discover.

MuzicNotez: What else are you working on? What can we expect to see and hear from you in the future? Tell us about the new album you have coming up in April.

LOVKN: I’m currently trying to organize some tours to play my new record live before the end of 2026. The full album, In Process, drops on April 17th, 11 songs produced at Bear Creek Studio just outside of Seattle. It’s an epic and legendary spot. 250 Kickstarter patrons helped me raise almost $20K to fund this record and I am eternally grateful to have been able to capture these songs in such a space. Ryan Hadlock and Timothy Robert Graham were wonderful to work with and helped pull something special out of me for these tunes. Booking a tour as a fully independent artist is daunting, but I want to do what I can to bring these songs across the US and perhaps even abroad over the remainder of 2026 and 2027. I’ve also begun working on another new album. I’m recording with my long time friend and talented artist/producer Taylor Armstrong in Portland. We tracked one song so far and it sounds RAD. I’m hoping we can turn it into another full length to be released in 2027.

MuzicNotez: Anything else you wish to say about yourself or your music? Any message for your fans?

LOVKN: When I began this journey in 2017, I didn’t imagine I could sustain the fans and listeners that I have now. As an independent artist, it’s my listeners who truly enable me to continue doing this. I am so grateful to all of those who have supported and believed in my music thus far and hope to meet many more friends along the way into the future. If you see a show of mine pop up in your area, please come out, I’d love to say hi and thank you for listening. Another way you can support my music is to purchase a Vinyl record or CD of my new album. For sale now at lovknmusic.com.