Welcome to SOUND ADVICE, Interview's playlist series spotlighting the artists, collaborators, and creative personalities shaping today's music landscape. Previous editions have featured selections from Petra Collins, Mckayla Twiggs, and María Isabel. This week's guest is Los Angeles singer songwriter Eli, whose nostalgic approach to pop has quickly made her one of the genre's most intriguing new voices.
After earning widespread praise for her debut album, Stage Girl, released in October 2025, Eli returned last month with a deluxe edition that expands on its early 2000s inspired blend of pop and R&B. The release further embraces the retro aesthetic that has become central to both her music and online identity.
To celebrate the project, Eli put together a playlist filled with performers who embody true stage presence, mixing legendary names such as Aretha Franklin with pop culture favorites like Hannah Montana and Addison Rae. She also answered our questionnaire, sharing her thoughts on Y2K fashion, Taylor Swift, and the biggest musical red flags.
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Where do you dance?
In my bedroom and on stage, which are synonymous spaces to me.
Who do you dance with?
My girlfriend.
What’s your favorite Taylor Swift song?
“Happiness” on Evermore is gut-wrenching and beautiful or “Clean” cuz the Imogen [Heap] production goes crazy.
Who do you trust most with the aux?
Trust no one.
Which song on this playlist makes you cry?
“I Can’t Make You Love Me” and “Fountain.”
What do your journal pages look like?
Just a mess, complaining about problems that I can fix just by taking action, but all I wanna do is lay in bed and repeat to myself how overwhelmed I am over and over again.
Who would play you in the biopic of your life?
Elle Fanning.
What are you praying for?
A livable wage for every human on earth.
Fuck, marry, kill: skinny scarves, pageboy hats, jeans under skirts.
- Marry jeans under skirts because that’s actually just forever fashion and has nothing do with Y2K, like girl bye, they were wearing jeans under skirts long before then.
- Skinny scarves can get fucked cuz Amanda Overmyer and Steven Tyler look so fab in them.
- Pageboy hats, I guess may they rest in peace. Lowkey don’t mind cuz even tho I feel so cute in them, they really do just give heavy “I’m emulating the past,” which contrary to popular belief is not something I want to do.
What’s a lyric you wish you wrote?
I wish I were the first person to say “I love you” in a song. I’d be a billionaire and then I could redistribute my wealth.
Who’s the most iconic stage girl?
Aretha Franklin
Dream collab, dead or alive?
Dara Allen, heyyyy girl check DMs!
