Interview: Riley Wylie

What drives a 17-year-old to turn life’s toughest moments into songs that feel like they were written just for you? For Riley Wylie, it’s all about connecting through honesty. In her exclusive interview, Riley opens up about everything—from growing up in a musical household to the heartbreaks and healing that inspired her first two singles, In Between and Save Me.

She talks about the lessons learned from her first serious relationship, the emotional toll of her parents’ divorce, and how she channels those feelings into music that resonates with listeners of all ages. Riley also dives into her creative process, musical influences, and what’s next as she carves out her place in the industry.

If you’ve been loving her songs, this is your chance to go deeper and see the heart behind the lyrics.

The Riley Wylie Interview…..

Q: Can you tell us a bit about yourself, Where are you from, how old are you?
A: My name is Riley Wylie and I am a singer/songwriter and dancer from the Chicagoland area. I am 17 years old.

Q: how did you first get into music, when did your passion start?
A: I feel like I never really had a specific time when I got into music because I have been around it my whole life. My dad is a musician so as soon as I was born that was my life. He would always put something in my hands whether that was a microphone, guitar, or drum sticks I was intrigued. I knew I wanted to be a singer ever since I could talk but my passion for it didn’t really start until middle school and even then, I didn’t believe it would be possible until my first release.

Q: What inspired your stage name, or is Riley Wylie your real name?
A: Riley Wylie is my real name. My team and I talked about creating a stage name, and I already had one in mind. I wanted it to be “Riley lynn”…My first name was supposed to be Rileylynn when I was born but the nurse wrote it wrong on my birth certificate and put “Lynn” as my middle name. We decided to go with Riley Wylie after we found out that the artist name was taken.

Q: Who are some of your biggest musical influences?
A: Some of my biggest inspirations are Destiny’s child, Sabrina Carpenter, Amy Winehouse, Tate Mcrae, and Britney Spears.

Q: How would you describe your sound to someone who hasn’t heard your music yet?
A: It’s hard to describe my sound because I’m still finding it. Going off of my first release I would describe it as R&B and pop. Though I also really love the OG pop culture and am looking for ways to put that in my music also. We all love songs we can dance to.

Q: Your track “In Between” has really resonated with listeners, including me! What’s the story or inspiration behind the song?
A: I’m so glad to hear “In-between” has impacted people! The song really resonates with me because it’s about something I experienced. When I was 13, I had my first boyfriend. We went to school together and talked on snapchat. Basically, how any relationship starts in middle school/high school and before we started dating I should of saw the signs, but I ignored them. He was very controlling- wanted things to go his way and when they wouldn’t he would push and push to try and get me to do something. In the relationship I wasn’t happy he did a lot of things that I started to notice (Cheating, gaslighting, etc). After we broke up, he started doing the same things to other girls. So, this song is basically saying I know what you do, and I see it but I’ll keep that between you and I.

Q: Can you share what the writing and recording process was like for “In Between”?
A: In-between was one of the very first songs I worked on with my producer. He showed me this track he made and asked if I wanted to try writing to it. So, I went home and immediately started thinking of a melody and some lyrics and that’s when the inspiration behind the song really hit me. It took me a while to finish the song because it was hard for me to get the words out in a way that would tell my story the way I want it to be told, and my dad actually helped me with some of the lyrics on this song.

Q: Did you play the guitar on the track, or collaborate with other musicians?
A: I did not play the guitar on this track my producer made the track. His wife is also a singer named “Dominique Borishade” and she did some of the background vocals on my song. The recording process took a while. This song was very important to me and I wanted it perfect, and I remember on the last day we recorded the vocals for the song my producer asked about the story behind it. So I told him and he was like, “the emotion you feel right now when you tell me the story, put that in the song” and I went in the booth turned off the lights and when I got out he goes “that’s the one” and we listened to it and even though I wanted to fix things he made me leave it the way it was and I’m happy he did.

Q: You have a new song that dropped today, what can you tell us about it? What’s the vibe or story of the song?
A: I have two songs new songs. “Save Me” on 1/17 and “Hold Me” 1/24… These songs are similar in a lot of ways and go back-to-back. Save me and Hold me are more of a balled. We have a time when we’re in the stage of grief or hurt and then a time when we heal. Save me is about anxiety, the overwhelming thoughts that come with that, and finally realizing what it does to you and trying to find a way to heal and fix it. Hold me is about grief. It’s based off my parents’ divorce and trying to heal from it.

Q: How does this new tracks differ from “In Between”? Are you exploring any new themes or sounds?
A: These tracks and In-between are very different from each other. In-between is more upbeat and gives R&B vibes while Hold Me and Save Me are more of a balled. I’ve been doing a lot of exploring and I love that I don’t have to stay in a mold. Besides those songs I have some other songs in the works that are about being in love and are more upbeat.

Q: What’s your usual song writing process like? Do you start with lyrics, melody, or something else?
A: I feel like my songwriting process varies. Sometimes my producer sends me a track, or I completely make the song by scratch. Sometimes I’m just in my car and a lyric just pops up and I have to write it down. Or when I’m writing to a track, I immediately start singing lyrics trying to come up with a melody and then it all flows together.

Q: Do you draw inspiration from personal experiences, or do you like to imagine stories for your songs?
A: All of my songs are based off of personal experiences for the most part.

Q: Do you typically write alone, or do you collaborate with others?
A: I typically write alone; my dad helps out here and there with the lyrics when I’m stuck. But so far mostly everything is me when it comes to the lyrics.

Q: Do you remember the first song you ever wrote? What was it about?
A: The first song I ever wrote was in 2nd grade. I had a friend who didn’t want to be friends with me anymore. I do not remember the exact reason it was so long ago, but I remember going home taking out my journal and writing a song to get my best friend back and it worked so there’s that.

Q: What instruments do you play? Are there any other instruments you’re interested in learning?
A: I sing, play piano, violin, some guitar, and some drums.

Q: Are there any unexpected hobbies or interests you have outside of music that inspire your creativity?
A: Some hobbies I have are dancing, I’m a competitive dancer, and I also read. That’s like my second passion. I turned my closet into a reading nook, and I even have social media accounts for books.

Q: What’s something your fans might not know about you but would be surprised to learn?
A: Something my fans might not know is I switched to home schooling for my final year of high school and graduated 5 months early.

Q: How do you connect with your fans, through social media, live performances, or other ways?
A: I mostly connect with fans by talking to them. A lot of them DM me here and there and I even have some fans that I reach out to for their opinion on things.

Q: What do you hope listeners take away from your music?
A: My goal is to have my listeners relate to something within my music. Growing up in this world is difficult especially as a woman and I feel like my music expresses that. My main goal is to is to help people who have been through similar issues as me.

Q: Are there any upcoming live performances or events where fans can see you play?
A: Right now, I’m still in the works of finding places to perform and have been performing at local venues around my area.

Q: What’s your ultimate dream or goal as an artist?
A: My dream goal is to tour. I just want to see the world and meet people.

Q: Who would be your dream collaboration, and why?
A: My dream collaboration…I feel like this changes all the time but right now I would say Tate Mcrae. I feel like we could really make something cool together.

Q: What’s the one song you couldn’t stop listening to and would recommend that everyone hears at least once?
A: The song I have on repeat right now is “Marilyn Manroe” by CITITZEN THE ARTIST. Just very funky and makes you want to bob your head. I love the tone of his voice too.

Q: What’s one item you can’t live without when you’re creating music?
A: I cannot live without my notebook when it comes to song writing. All my lyrics go into my notebook.

Q: What’s one piece of advice you’d offer to other young artists trying to find their way?
A: Some advice I would offer a younger artist is to keep going. Being an artist can be really defeating at times and you’re going to feel like nothing’s working but every day there’s improvement and soon it will all go the way it’s supposed to go.

Artist Spotlight!

Read more about Riley Wylie on our artist Spotlight post HERE