Montreal-based boy band Ivytide is back with a new lo-fi pop track. Under the name “miss u btw,” the Indie band’s latest jam details what it’s like to endure a challenging breakup.
According to the trio, this new tune embodies “one side of a two-tailed story. Parting ways with someone leads to an inevitable feeling of withdrawal, pulling you back into the relationship you once had.” On the other hand, the flip side of this narrative “reflects all the countless fights and sleepless nights that drew you apart in the first place. While knowing things ended for a reason, a creeping feeling of nostalgia ceases to put your mind at ease.”
With “miss u btw,” Ivytide aspires to build off the massive success they’ve seen to date, boasting over 2.5-million catalogue streams and counting. The band’s groovy sound has even paved ways onto editorial playlists like Indie Pop & Chill, Montreal Chill, and Chill Vibes.
Although it seems as though there’s been a lot of smooth sailing for this pop squad, the group actually came into fruition amid a humbling scene. While at a local recording studio, founding musicians Nathan Gagné (vocals/guitar), Jamie Snytte (guitar) and Kyle Ruggiero (bass) bonded over a shared passion for creating bedroom pop with punchy lyricism. And the rest is history!
Celeb Secrets had the chance to chat with Ivytide via email interview on Tuesday, and the band members spilled some shocking details. From getting a celebratory fan-made cake delivery to living with a non-stop workflow, there’s hardly time for a dull moment with this team.
Do you have any plans to download “miss u btw”? Let us know by leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by tweeting us at @celebsecrets. To learn more about Ivytide and their creative influences, be sure to read our full Q&A below and give them a follow on Instagram at @ivytide.
Celeb Secrets: Congrats on coming out with another smooth track! Can you elaborate on any personal experiences that may have inspired the rising tensions in “miss u btw”?
Ivytide: “Appreciate it! ‘miss u btw’ is about the contrasting feelings that come after the end of a relationship. We’ve all had personal experiences like this, where there’s this creeping feeling of nostalgia that makes you want to go back to an ex, while you still know that it’s not the right move, and there were real reasons the relationship ended.”
CS: How do you hope your fans react when they hear the song debut on May 13?
Ivytide: “We hope they love it, that they can connect with it, sing along and play it for their friends.”
CS: If you had to direct a music video for “miss u btw,” what would the scene and storyline look like?
Ivytide: “Great question! I think we’d probably incorporate the letters and crumpled papers into the video, so maybe someone at a desk writing letters and letters and giving up, unsure if they should reach out to the person that broke their heart.”
CS: Can fans expect to see a music video for the new single anytime soon?
Ivytide: “We have a live session that takes some of those elements coming soon, so you get to hear the song in a new light (a stripped, more emotional version) and see Nathan playing the song in a big film studio space.”
CS: As a trio, do you mutually aspire to be like a particular boy band or individual artist?
Ivytide: “There are lots of artists who inspire us, and who we look up to (Dominic Fike, girl in red, Still Woozy, Verzache, Clairo). We always want to learn from [the] best, but we’re on our journey to figure this whole thing out!”
CS: If you could collab with any musical acts (alive or dead), who would you pick and why?
Ivytide: “Clairo would be fantastic because she’s one of our favourite artists and writers, Frank Ocean would also be amazing because his creativity is unmatched.”
CS: Does your group have any tricks for maintaining a healthy work flow amid the COVID-19 pandemic?
Ivytide: “We can’t not make music, we just love it so much, it’s probably what’s gotten us through the pandemic. Not sure if our workflow is healthy or not, but we have a great time.”
CS: When it’s safe, do you have any aspirations to perform “miss u btw” live for a large crowd?
Ivytide: “All we want to do is play for a live audience again. We’ve really grown as musicians and our audience has grown a lot since our last show, so we’re hoping to get out there soon!”
CS: How did your team celebrate after learning that Ivytide garnered over 2.5 million catalogue streams?
Ivytide: “A fan who is a baker actually baked us a cake, when we hit 1 million streams on our single ‘Undone’ and that was unreal. Such a crazy experience, and such a gorgeous tasty cake.”
CS: Since we’re Celeb Secrets, can you share any behind the scenes secrets from making the song that we wouldn’t know when listening to it?
Ivytide: “The song came together super quickly, and that’s when we knew we had something special. Like from Nathan’s original demo, to an updated full band instrumental, we got most of the sounds, textures and instrumentation done within a few hours. We were just in a flow state, and everything came really naturally for this one.”
