Who’s the Clown? by Audrey Hobert

Starting off with her hit single “Sue Me,” singer-songwriter Audrey Hobert took the music world by storm with her blunt lyrics and catchy chorus. A month after releasing her first song, Hobert released “Bowling Alley,” her second single for her debut album titled Who’s the Clown?. The alt-pop album gained instant popularity, especially the songs that feature Hobert’s signature candid writing style. In songs like “Thirst Trap,” where she details all-consuming thoughts over a love interest—“I used to kick back, watching movies and the news / But now I’m lame, it’s such a shame, I used to be so super cool”—fans are drawn to the authenticity of not only the lyricism, but of Hobert herself. Hobert’s photoshoots aren’t the polished, high-budget scenes we’re used to seeing. Instead, her promotion photos are her posing with uncooked spaghetti or lying on top of clothes strewn on a bed. This rawness is refreshing to see when much of the music world can seem so manufactured, like a series of ploys for the next big hit. But Hobert sends the opposite message; it seems like she merely stumbled into this newfound fame.

Since the release of her album, Audrey Hobert has performed on Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight Show and embarked on her first tour. “The Staircase to Stardom Tour” has stops across the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and Europe throughout December and March.