SuperKnova Interview

1. What is your name and your profession(s)?

I’m Ellie Kim, aka SuperKnova, and I’m a guitarist, producer, audio engineer and indie pop artist.

2. What is your ethnic background and what is your citizenship?

I’m Korean American, US citizen currently living in NYC.

3. Are either/both of your parents musicians or somehow involved in the music industry?

I’m the first musician in my family, but my family is pretty good with our hands and feet. My grandfather was a painter, my dad was a 6th degree Judo black belt, and several of my family members were professional athletes.

4. Please tell us a little bit about your experience, either growing up as an AAPI in America, or as a person of Asian descent who immigrated to America, whichever applies.

I grew up in a small suburb in Illinois and didn’t grow up around a lot of Asian people unfortunately. My parents sent me to Korean school on the weekends, so I saw other Asian people, but I definitely felt ostracized and othered everywhere else. I experienced anti-asian racism in many forms, everything from people thinking our food was “gross” to vandalism of our house with messages telling us to go back to where we came from. Things got better when I moved to Chicago which is a little more diverse and definitely better once I moved to NYC. Most of my friends here in NYC are Asian American and queer.

5. How connected do you feel to your heritage/culture(s)?

I feel very connected to my Korean American identity and to the Asian American Diaspora. I think it’s so powerful how we come from so many different places but share a common history and lived experience. TBH being Asian American is more core to who I am than Koreanness by itself.  I’ve never lived in South Korea, so I don’t feel as connected to the country, but I am proud of how far South Korea has come culturally as a major world power. 

6. 6a.) How did you get into music? Did you major in music in college? Where did you attend college/university (and grad school(s), if applicable) and in what subjects did you get your degree(s)?

I started playing guitar when I was 10. A friend of mine got a bass for Christmas and I remember being kind of enthralled by it. My mom had an old acoustic guitar she brought with her from Korea, so I started on that. Once they realized I was serious, they bought me a cheap Squier from Guitar Center. I was hooked. I played it constantly and became obsessed with playing it. I played guitar in tons of bands in high school and college and eventually majored in Jazz Guitar performance.

6b.) When and how did you decide you were going to pursue music professionally? What were your parents’ reactions to you deciding to pursue music? Do they support your music career now?

Predictably, they were not thrilled about it, LOL. I did pre-med while also doing my music degree, so my parents were happy about that. I did tons of music and just did the pre-med classes on the side. By a twist of fate, though, I actually did end up going to medical school after graduating. By the time I got to senior year, I was kind of burnt out from 4 years of the music grind: intense study, gigging on the side, traveling and lots of tough gigs. Also, I was starting to realize I was transgender and my internalized transphobia at the time convinced me I had do a big “respectable” job to “compensate” for my identity. That combined with the fact that my parents were expecting me to go, made me actually apply. The lie became the truth and I was accepted to medical school.  When I got there though, I realized that I still loved music and that medicine really wasn’t for me. I took leave of absence from school and formally started my coming out/transition. During that time I also started SuperKnova and started writing songs again. SuperKnova started gaining some traction and I thought about dropping out of school.  However, by that time I had already done 3 of the 4 years of my degree, so I decided to go back and finish the final year and graduate. After graduation, I went right back to music. I worked a day job in medical research while building SuperKnova. After 3 years, I was making enough money to quit my job and that’s what I’ve been doing since. My parents were not supportive of my career change or my gender identity, but by that point I felt confident in myself. I knew who I was and I didn’t need their approval. I understand why they might feel the way they do based on their own trauma. Their thought process is understandable given their history as marginalized immigrants who grew up in poverty. I can have empathy for them AND also acknowledge that my path is allowed to be different from theirs. I chose to do what makes me happy. 

7. What are a few of your (music) projects of which you are the proudest? What were your roles on those projects? Beyond those projects, please feel free to name some of your other credits as well as any brands/companies you officially endorse.

I feel so blessed to have had many proud moments in my career. Everything from playing sold out venues, to hearing my music in Fortnite, to working with big brands like Fender, Sephora, and TikTok. But in all honesty, the thing that drives me everyday that I’m most proud of is how my music has connected me with queer and trans people all across the world. I’ve gotten messages from people telling me that my music has helped them to come out or feel confident in their own gender identities. A girl at my show told me she listens to my music on her shot day and it makes the shots less painful. A man in Europe said my song “Goals_” gave him the confidence to pursue his own dreams of being writer and now he is in grad school pursuing that dream. Music has always been such a source of confidence, power, and even spirituality for me, and I feel most blessed to provide that in some small way for others as well.

8. What are some obstacles you have encountered (if any) being an AAPI in the music world? What are some obstacles you have encountered (if any) as an AAPI in general (non-music)? Conversely, has being an AAPI ever helped you in the music industry or in general?

The music landscape is so vast and diverse now that people are seeking out reasons to listen to music beyond just catchy songs or popularity. This was always the case of course but now even more so because we have more choices to choose from. I think a lot of people want to feel connected to artists on a deeper level and sometimes that can be through identity (race, gender identity/expression, etc.). I know I get more excited when I find out an artist I like is transgender or Asian American and I’m also more willing to check out an artist I don’t know if they are a person I can relate to. I think that’s a great thing and one way being yourself, whoever you are, can help you as an artist. 

9. 9a.) Who are some AAPI musicians/composers/producers who have previously inspired and currently inspire you (if any)? Why?

Growing up, I really looked up to Mike Park of Asian Man Records. He was everything I was into at the time, punk, indie music and DIY culture. He sold records out of his mom’s garage and championed diverse artists including many Asian and Asian American artists. I also love Rina Sawayama and her boundary pushing pop vision in music and visuals. On the producer side, I love Malay. He did many of Frank Ocean’s tracks on Channel Orange and Blonde. I just love how he blends soft, dreaminess with hard hitting beats and emotion. 

9b.) What are your hopes for the AAPI music community and your hopes for AAPIs in general?

I hope that AAPI representation continues to grow in pop music and we’re given more opportunities and funding to get there. While initially helpful, I hope we eventually grow beyond the “diversity initiatives” and are seen and respected for what we are: talented, unique artists who move people with our work in many different genres. 

10. Name one or two non-music-related things/subjects about which you are also passionate.

When I moved to NYC, I joined a queer recreational basketball league. I didn’t really play sports growing up, was always more an arts kid, but found a really beautiful queer, Asian American community in this rec basketball league. It’s been huge joy reclaiming this experience (music and sports felt so much more segregated growing up) and connecting to queer Asian American community in this way. 

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Support SuperKnova (Ellie) online :)

Instagram - @SuperKnovaMusic

YouTube - SuperKnovaMusic

Spotify - SuperKnova

Bandcamp - https://superknova.bandcamp.com

Soundcloud - https://soundcloud.com/superknovamusic

TikTok - @SuperKnovaMusic

Official Website - https://superknovaofficial.com/

Images courtesy of Ellie Kim

Post sponsored by PickUp Music