A Chat with Brianna McGeehan (18.05.26)
Ahead of her new EP out this summer, Brianna McGeehan has released her new single ‘Hey Teacher’. We chat with the singer-songwriter about all things music below.
OSR: Your new single, ‘Hey Teacher’, is described as a ‘boundary-setting spell’. What inspired the song, and why did now feel like the right time to release it?
McGeehan: Well, as you can imagine, a few specific individuals inspired some of the lyrics, but I won’t name names! Really, though, it’s about general boundary setting, insisting on what we deserve and saying a big no to everything and everyone else. Really, it feels like a timeless life lesson to me and is endlessly relevant.
OSR: There’s a strong emotional honesty running through ‘Hey Teacher’. Was it difficult to write something so direct and personal?
McGeehan: Honestly, no. lol. I have a tendency to say the true thing out loud even if it isn’t entirely socially acceptable. I am a Leo after all…
OSR: You’ve said Ireland increasingly feels like home. What is it about the country, creatively or personally, that has drawn you in so strongly?
McGeehan: Well, first off, I grew up in an Irish-American family that held on tight to their Irish heritage, and I was very close with my grandmother, who, while she was born in Philadelphia, was born into an insular Irish community and was culturally Irish in many ways. She toted me around as a child, telling random strangers I was 100% Irish (I’m only half) and would say things to me I knew came directly from her mother and on back. Leaving her house, she would often say to me, “Always remember you are a McGeehan, but you are also a Corrigan and a McDonnell too!” So being of Irish descent has just been a huge part of my identity since I was quite young. But also, I just love Ireland. I love the music, I love the people, I love the food, I love all the water, I love everyone singing in the pubs… there’s a certain vibe. And I want to learn so much more, I’m so curious about Irish Mythology, and the language and the way people relate to death, I could go on and on….
OSR: You’re returning to Ireland again this autumn. How are you approaching these upcoming shows differently from your last visit?
McGeehan: I am bringing my friend Kristin Larkin this time! She is also Irish-American and has been many times. We plan to bring some sweet harmonies, our originals, of course, but also some lively covers and loads of stories. I’m asking for prayers starting now that I miraculously become a better driver between now and then. Driving on the other side of the road is really something. I was inspired much by honking this last time around.
OSR: Your debut solo EP arrives this July. How would you describe the sound and emotional landscape of the record?
McGeehan: I would call it art-pop. It’s dreamy and deep, but also fun and exuberant. I’m so so excited about it!
OSR: Is there a thread connecting the songs on the EP, or does each track capture a different chapter or mindset?
McGeehan: Oh, it’s truly about everything. All drawing from my life experiences, because that’s just how I work as a writer. I think it’s very honest. It’s about what we take refuge in, and the darker times when refuge seems to not be accessible. It’s about the human experience in modern times.
OSR: You collaborated with Drew De Man and Colin Agnew on ‘Hey Teacher’. What did they bring to the track that helped shape its final sound?
McGeehan: Yes! Colin brings the drums and beats, and he engineered it, so a lot of the electronic stuff…although some of that is actually my voice, we just put effects on it to make it sound like a synth. Drew plays a bunch of different instruments on it; they both brought so much to the track! I am such a collaborative artist, I do let my collaborators kind of just create and bring what they bring to the song without being so specific in terms of what I want from them. I’m like, “let’s make something and see what happens!”
OSR: You’ve been open about concerns surrounding the political climate in the US. How has that uncertainty influenced your creativity and outlook as an artist?
McGeehan: So a part of my story is that when I was 18, I lived with an exiled black panther in Tanzania and began my political education. As a student of history, I know that all of this violence we are seeing in the US is nothing new; in fact, it is very on brand for the US. My whole adult life, I have faced that reality, and it has certainly shaped who I am as an artist. All of my songs feel political to me, even if they don’t outright sound political or are steeped in metaphor. Everything is political. Breathing is political.
OSR: Many artists are cautious about discussing politics publicly. Why is it important for you to speak openly about what’s happening in the world around you?
McGeehan: What else is there to talk about? What is more important than pointing out the systems of oppression that cause human suffering and aid in creating a new world? Nothing, as far as I am concerned. If I say something compassionate and true that offends another person and puts them off, that’s really a them issue. I’m more interested in living an authentic life and speaking up for justice than I am interested in being liked, I guess.
OSR: Your music often feels intimate and reflective, but ‘Hey Teacher’ has a sharper edge. Do you feel yourself entering a new creative era?
McGeehan: No, I think I only have so many things to say that I would choose to say in that tone. Honestly, what comes out of me as a songwriter rarely feels like a choice; I just try to get out of the way so the song can come through, so also like…who knows?
Many thanks to Brianna McGeehan for speaking with us. Find out more about Brianna McGeehan on her official website, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify.
