PHEM X ALISON WONDERLAND DROP TIGER KING-INSPIRED NEW SINGLE “W.W.C.B.D.”
Following widespread acclaim from Atwood Magazine and RunTheTrap as well as 20 million-plus streams and counting, alternative pop sorceress phem and Australian superstar Alison Wonderland pose a question that has been on everybody’s mind as of late with their new single “W.W.C.B.D.”–i.e. “wut wud carole baskin do?” Get it HERE via nvr giv up/Caroline. Inspired by the cultural phenomenon and NETFLIX documentary series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, the track fuses echo-y trap beat-craft and electronic transmissions from Wonderland with phem’s ruddy acoustic guitar and hypnotic croon. It closes out on a possible answer to this popular quarantine query as phem strains out the final crescendo, “Feed you to the tigers, but I can’t because this virus got me paralyzed again.” Check out the visualizer HERE. About “W.W.C.B.D.”, phem commented, “During this quarantine, I became obsessed with Tiger King (just like everyone else). Every day, I was searching the hashtag on Twitter to see what other people thought and how they were reacting to Carole and the mysterious death of her husband. Feeling frustrated about being stuck inside and the idea that many people are cooped up with their significant others, (many who are at their breaking point and probably wish they could end the relationship), I picked up my guitar and began playing a simple baseline. The words came out naturally. The demo was short and concise, but I wanted some extra production and had been going back and forth with Alison Wonderland for a few months about making stuff together, so I sent it to her. She loved the idea. Within a day’s time, she sent it back and made it sound so good I almost started crying. Literally, we made this shit in two days. I didn’t want to be precious about it. It feels like no rules apply right now. It was something fun and relatable, and we both wanted it out ASAP.” Immediately, the track incited widespread critical applause. NME noted, “‘W.W.C.B.D.?’ walks a fine line between the two artists’ signature styles: starting off with pronounced riffs clouded in phem’s lo-fi demeanor, before exploding into dark, moody production from Alison Wonderland.” EDM.com praised it as “short and sweet,” and YOUREDM claimed, “For ‘W.W.C.B.D. phem delivers a haunting vocal performance as Wonderland drops a dark trap beat dripping with animal print. We can always expect music eclectic in nature from phem, but with this track’s acoustic textures and eerie tones, this is AW like we’ve never heard her before. Much like the Tiger King, we feel it.” Dancing Astronaut summed it up best as, “impressive.” phem continues to make waves. Last year’s “Sorry Mama” [feat. Machine Gun Kelly] racked up over 4.5 million global streams to date and received the endorsement of OnesToWatch who promised the track, “Will have you confessing your sins.” Meanwhile, her collaboration with Gabriel Black, “Dead Yet, surpassed 4 million cumulative streams thus far and was prominently featured in an episode of HBO’s hit show, Euphoria. Conjuring a bold brew of alternative, pop, and hip-hop, Los Angeles artist, producer, and multi-instrumentalist phem extracts masterful melodies from personal conflict, otherworldly darkness, and all kinds of important questions. Living and working out of a Crenshaw studio, she introduced herself with the independent Can’t Kill Me EP in 2018 followed by the VACUMHEAD EP a year later. As she captivated a growing fan base, she collaborated with everyone from G-Eazy to Lil Tracy and delivered series of buzzing singles “Sorry Mama” [feat. Machine Gun Kelly] and “Dead Yet” with Gabriel Black, churning out 20 million streams. Not to mention, she landed on the pages of PAPER, i-D Magazine, Billboard, and more.
