Hailing from Tampa, Florida, Aidan Bissett has found the likes of millions across social media before being signed to Capitol Records in 2021.
Since then, things have been moving quickly for the 22-year-old. With two sold-out headlining tours and multiple experiences supporting acts such as Lauv and Valley, Bissett has become a rising songwriter to watch.
With the release of two extended plays, More Than Friends & Friends (2021) and I’m Alright If You’re OK (2022), Aidan’s latest body of work, Supernova (Extended) (2024), showcased the songwriter’s ability to express his vulnerability and raw honesty. After his debut headlining tour, Aidan Bissett returned to the stage just a few months later with the “Supernova: How’s It Gonna End Tour.”
What struck me most in my conversation with Aidan was the dedicated intentionality of his art. With deliberation about the content and quality of his work, ensuring everything he produces reflects his artistic vision along with each new era of music. This dedication extends to every aspect of his music, from the innovative sounds in his future projects to the compelling visuals and aesthetics of each record.
Aidan’s inspiration is drawn from a diverse range of musical influences. He finds creative fuel in the 2010s alt-pop sound, exemplified by Billie Eilish’s HIT ME HARD AND SOFT album and the energetic vibe of Brit-rock groups like Oasis and The Hives. With these varied influences, Aidan has a clear and distinct vision for the music he wants to share with the world.
Check out the full interview with Aidan below!
How do you unwind and recharge after a tour before diving into a new project and a new cycle that comes with the new music?
Bissett: I moved into a new place right before the tour started, and it’s in a much quieter area. So, it allows me to lay low. I wasn’t social at all for the first week. I tend to need at least a week where I can just be by myself and decompress. I usually get back into writing quickly just because it makes me feel in tune with the creative process.
How do you give yourself time to envision this next chapter? Do you write a little bit on the road?
Bissett: Yeah, I always used to like the idea of writing on the road. I think a lot of artists do. I brought my setup on this one, like, “Oh sure, I’ll use it.” Every time where I thought I would use it, I was just exhausted. So I focused more on the show and like making sure it was the perfect show for where we were. With writing, I wasn’t necessarily writing, but touring allowed me to think about the project. It centers you in a bit with where you are in your project and where you want to go. It gives me a very clear vision of when I get back off tour, what I am going to be writing and how I want to present it.
When you’re creating music, do you create it with the intention of your live performances and how it will sound at a live show?
Bissett: Yeah, I definitely prioritize that. I love live performances. When I’m writing, sometimes, I’ll lay down like an instrumental palette or track, and then I’ll get on the mic. It sounds so weird, but I’ll pretend like I’m performing. So I can see what feels the easiest rolling off my tongue and what melodies feel the easiest. If was slipping into that character on stage, how would that character sing it? It really helps me get into the headspace, and it tends to make the creation a lot easier because I’m not overthinking. I’m doing the first thing that comes to mind.
Sometimes, I feel like the live performances and versions of songs are even better than the studio versions. Since you’ve been performing so much, especially within the last year, you’ve had a mix of headlining shows and supporting acts like Valley. How has your performance evolved? Do you feel yourself becoming a little bit more present on stage, confident, and comfortable?
Bissett: Yeah, I think the biggest growth has been in confidence, especially when playing guitar on stage. I’ve played guitar for years, but obviously, playing guitar and singing for some reason makes my brain freak out. So getting around that learning curve has been definitely a lot to handle on the first tour. On this one, I felt way more comfortable. It felt like an extension of my body. being able to command and sing as well as move and play and kind of dance with it, which was really nice. Even when I didn’t have the guitar, I still felt like I had a little more confidence in being able to walk around and own the stage. I think that was definitely the biggest piece of growth.
Aidan Bissett – Credit Juston Case
You have a very dedicated fan base who will camp for hours outside of venues for you. It may be a little bit difficult to pinpoint a specific moment, but were there any specific fan interactions from the tour where you realized your music’s impact on people?
Bissett: Yeah, there are little moments all over the place. Definitely the camping thing. It’s kind of crazy to me. Especially because we’re playing in small venues. I think it’s so cool that they do that because it’s not always necessary when you can just like walk up to the front of the venue. A lot of my fans love to write real letters. I’ll get letters from them about how something is impacting them. They’ll take the time to write it out. I read all of those. They’re so personal and intimate and beautiful. If someone is going to take the time to sit down and write out basically an essay about how my music has impacted them, it means a lot to me because it shows that they really care.
Given that social media plays a big role in music marketing nowadays, how does it feel to bring this music to life on stage? How has it felt witnessing your fans’ reactions and the impact of that?
Bissett: I started making music in high school in Tampa. Tampa is not really a music city, and there are not a lot of connections. The only outlet I had for the music was the internet, which greatly helped me, and got me signed. The internet is a weird place because it’s constantly changing. Even on the internet three years ago, when I got signed, it is very different from what social media is now. I think we’re all trying to figure out the best way to navigate that and how to use it to the best of our ability while still staying mysterious and cool and not giving too much away.
It is incredible to look back. I can remember sitting in my parents’ bedroom; I was in a darker period because I didn’t really want to go to school, and I knew that I wanted to do it, and I was hoping that I would be able to tour and I’d be able to move to LA. Little by little, we made it to that point. It’s nice to just take a step back and think about how this is what I was dreaming of three years ago. If I could talk to my 17-year-old self, I would think that I’m incredibly successful in living the dream, which is true.
Diving into a little bit more about the visuals for your music. That’s also something that a lot of artists prioritize nowadays. Could you touch on this era and what inspired you the visuals, imagery, and aesthetics, or about the upcoming one as well?
Bissett: I have a binder right in front of me of the entire creative reference for the album, which I’m not going to give too much away because it’s so great. I don’t want to spoil anything, but I’ll start with Supernova. The Supernova project was the first time that I really wanted to start developing a world around the project. World-building is really important to me. I think it separates a musician from an artist.
I think one of the downsides of social media, in my opinion, is it sometimes eliminates the art of world-building around a project because it’s directly to the consumer instead of these Easter eggs. Some artists are great at it. I mean, look at Taylor Swift. She’s the queen of that stuff. I really wanted to focus on building that for my listeners and my fans. I wanted to make it gradual. I didn’t want it to be a stark change from the last EP to this EP. We started with the three performance videos, but they were very stylized, and then the short story pieces with How’s It Gonna End and Planet were both shot on film. I love working on film. I love intention. Intention is something that’s important to me. I think the film is the most intentional you can be, which sounds very snobby, but I say that because you only get so many takes. It forces you to be very intentional on every shot, especially when it’s like storyboarding.
When you’re storyboarding, you have to have everything planned out, which is really beautiful. Leading into this next project, I wanted those darker tones, like with How’s It Gonna End and Planet, to kind of start painting that a little bit. I don’t necessarily think it’s going to be super dark, but I wanted to at least give fans and listeners a glimpse of what else I can do. I’m writing a lot about mental health. It’s a little darker and grittier. It’s black and white with a splash of color, much more mature and moodier. I wanted to bring in a little bit more of a sex appeal with the rock aspect of things. I’ve never touched on that. It’s more about the nuance of love and mental health. I’ve dealt with depression and anxiety and learning how to navigate that. The tone of it is much, much more mature, which is harder for me to wrap my head around. But I think I wanted a challenge, and I wanted to talk about some of the things that I’ve been dealing with and hadn’t really touched on in years. I think the coolest way to do that is to dress visuals and songs up as fun pop songs, and then you’re saying some morbid stuff.
This is definitely very light compared to what we’ve been talking about, but in wrapping up our conversation, I wanted to know what artists you’ve been listening to lately. Were there any artists on the road or pregame music you would listen to before going on stage?
Bissett: I love Brit rock, the Hives, U2, Oasis. I love the 1975. I’m huge into the whole British space. The way that they’re really cut and dry with their lyricism. Inhaler as well… The new Billie Eilish album is one of the coolest albums I’ve ever heard. I can’t stop listening to it. This album is one of those things that sounds so new yet familiar at the same time. Her vocal performance on it is great. That song, “Birds of a Feather,” cannot get enough of it.