Xolie Morra Cogley is a Seattle singer-songwriter. She plays in a band called The Strange Kind, singing, strumming guitar and mouth-trumpeting. Recently, her band got a fun announcement – that they’ll be playing Jimmy Kimmel Live! The Monarch Review had a chance to chat with Xolie about her upcoming gigs, her songwriting process and what it’s like living as a high-functioning autistic in contemporary Pacific Northwest culture. 

Jake Uitti: You have a lot going on these days – planning an October 4^th Neumo’s show, where you will share publicly the date you’ll be playing Jimmy Kimmel, as well as working on new tunes and recording. What I want to know first is: can you explain your relationship with the music organization Ourstage and how that involvement let to your announcement Oct. 4^th?

Xolie Morra Cogley: Ourstage.com has been a HUGE part of my career solo and with the band.  The contests have given chances to us as independent artists, both monetarily and through opportunities such as winning studio gear through the Intel Superstars competition, opening for Hanson and The 2010 Lilith Fair where I got to meet my Idols in the industry such as Sarah McLachlan & Sheryl Crow. Ourstage also helps get songs licensed to film & TV and I have forged a relationship with them because of the progress we have shown over the years, but it’s main focus is the competitions it hosts and getting the independent artist the recognition they deserve. The latest competition I won was the Artist Access competition, through which I met my now good friend Bruce Tyler.  Thanks to Bruce & Ourstage my band’s music was passed along to the producers of Jimmy Kimmel Live along with a few other Ourstage up & comers, and the producers chose us to be on the show.  Since this opportunity has been announced a few other amazing things are in the works that we will be announcing in the coming months.

JU: When you sit down to write a song, what do you think about?

XMC: Well, it kind of depends on the song. I do better under pressure and deadlines.  So working with the production team I do commercial work with is a lot easier.  The Nikon ads we did were themed (“Tears” & “The Day”) so the lyrics were not so hard to come by.  Writing more personal songs takes a bit longer and I try to move through whatever it is I am dealing with honestly.  I guess I just kind of think in the moment as it’s coming and try to let it flow naturally.  Some of the original melodic ideas come out with crazy sounds jumbled around that end up becoming words down the line.

JU: Do you find yourself hearing music wherever you go? Or is it something to try and channel consciously when you sit down with an instrument?

XMC: My head is a radio.  Having Autism I tend to think in music.  Songs play constantly in my head fully produced and it can be kind of difficult to try things differently, because I hear the production so clearly.  I lose a lot of ides too, because when I go to put down one idea, 10 more fill the space and I end up forgetting what I was working on to begin with.  I think the key to my writing is having people around to help focus me on one song at a time.

JU: Can you speak to the support system you’ve built around you?

XMC: My fiancé Saundra is a very intricate part of my support network.  Without her I would be lost to my own devices.  She gives unconditional love & makes sure that I am able work without a lot of stress surrounding me.  My band mates are super understanding of my methods. They do a great job of putting up with my bossiness and have found ways to help me hear past my own thoughts. It’s hard sometimes for people to remember that I have Autism because I am considered high functioning. My family and extended family have been so supportive through the years, as well.  I think it’s important to recognize children’s talents and to do everything you can to encourage them to use those talents as much as possible.  My parents did a great job of this.

JU: Do you want to talk at all about ‘your methods’? How your autism manifests itself?

XMC: My Autism manifests it’s self in different ways, some good, some not so good, but music is the greatest thing my Autism brings to me. I don’t think I would hear music the same way without my Autism.  Life is difficult in general for a neuro-typical person, but as an Autistic person, my senses get overloaded regularly.  Socially I am either super awkward or overly into a social setting thus coming across as somewhat weird (smiles).  Music is an outlet that allows me to relate normally in a world that I usually have a pretty hard time fitting into.  As well, in my every day life, I have vocal and motor tics that resurfaced about two years ago after a major surgery.  Music has been the one main outlet that allows me to not tic.  Playing with a band is purely selfish for me, because I enjoy being on stage and interacting with people in an environment I am most comfortable in whilst not tic-ing.  The stage is my comfort zone and it’s easy to be natural on it. (My regiment of tic medications doesn’t hurt either.)

JU: Do you remember your first show?

XMC: My first show was a talent show my sister put on at her school called “Regina & Friends”. I was about 8 years old and had just had growths removed from my vocal cords.  After my throat healed, she invited me to sing with her and got me up on stage for the first time singing “You Are My Sunshine”.  I sang harmonies for her.  Up until I was about 15 I didn’t really feel comfortable singing lead. In middle school I put together a little group and played sax.  And also played a few festivals with the school Jazz band.  My first  “real singing gig” was the battle of the bands at my school.  We got disqualified because our bass player didn’t go to our school.

JU: What’s the most difficult thing about the life of being a songwriter that you hadn’t imagined before?

XMC: Well, I could go into the realization that the industry isn’t fair and songs get stolen legally just by having a couple of notes changed, and I could go into how angry that has made me over the years, but when it comes down to it, I’m pretty happy with where my career is going and I won’t worry too much about being told my songs sound like something else or what not, because there are about 10 songs on the radio right now that sound almost exactly alike and whether it was intentionally stolen or just a collective consciousness by a higher power, music is music and I’ll keep pushing my music till I get where I’m going.

JU: In that vein, what would your ideal bill be for a show here in The Town?

XMC: Well, we are going to have a sick bill on October 4th. starting the night off with us, The Strange Kind, moving through to Keaton Collective, Hobosexual and last but not least our good friends Fox And The Law.  But I would quite enjoy playing a show with The Great Um & Jesus Rehab (wink).  But down the line, ideally, I have a ton of amazing musician friends and honestly I think it would be amazing to put together a show with all of them backed by the Seattle Rock Orchestra doing all original local indie bands.