Sky Ferreira has spoken up about what she claims are her record label's attempts to control her.
In a chat with Nancy Sinatra for Interview, the singer-songwriter said she felt misunderstood in the early days of her career and was pigeonholed.
“In the music industry, everyone’s trying to mold you. They have an idea of what you should be,” Ferreira explained. “People get greedy. When I was younger, I got cornered in situations where it was like, ‘You have to do this,’ and I didn’t know better. It was just different back then.
“The internet was there, but it wasn’t this thing that people had figured out. I used it to my advantage – that really helped me get my stuff out. But I’ve been shelved so many times.”
Ferreira, whose debut EP was released in 2011 and was followed by her first studio album in 2013, said her early music “wasn’t a fair representation.”
Ferreira's sophomore album Masochism is due out this year – after being held up for several years. She said having a good relationship with her record label is important but she won’t be controlled.
“I wasn’t going to compromise, but I was willing to be a little more open ... I wanted them to do stuff with me and give me a fair chance,” she said.
“I wasn’t afraid of them. You’re set up in situations to seem difficult, but also, what does that even mean? Just that you’re not willing to be completely controlled. And it’s funny how these people think. It’s as if you’re ungrateful, as if you’re not working for it. They’re like, ‘Don’t you know how lucky you are? There’s another one of you in line.’ And I’m like, ‘Okay, well go do it with them then.’”
Ferreira said it’s all about respect. “A lot of it is sexist, but I also think it’s because I started when I was 14, so they feel like they can manipulate me, or treat me like a 14-year-old or something.”