Billboard - 24.08.2019

MARTINEZ: BRIAN ZUNIGA/MELANIE MARTINEZ. STILLS: COURTESY OF MELANIE MARTINEZ. SLEATER-KINNEY: ASTRID STAWIARZ/GETTY IMAGES. PHILADELPHIA, CHICAGO, CAT, KANGAROO, FAX, ANSWERING MACHINE: GETTY IMAGES. MILK: COURTESY OF OATLY. ST. VINCENT: ANGELA WEISS/AFP/GETTY IMAG

ES.

W

hen Melanie Martinez released her debut album, Cry Baby, in 2015, she

created a vulnerable persona in the titular character that connected with a

large audience. For her follow-up, K-1 2, out Sept. 6 on Atlantic Records, the

alt-pop artist chronicles the stress of growing from a toddler to a teenager.

K-1 2 quickly evolved from a concept album into a full-length feature film, for which

Martinez started writing a script in 2017. In the 90-minute movie (which Martinez, 24,

directed), Cry Baby, a sensitive girl with magical powers, is sent to a disturbing sleep-away

school, where she battles everything from mind control to racial and gender discrimination.

“My main goal was to display school as a condensed version of life,” says Martinez of the

film, which will be shown in theaters worldwide on Sept. 5. “It’s about killing the system,

escaping a structure you feel trapped by.”

Growing Pains

FAVORITE ARTIST/GROUP

MOST-LOVED CITY TO PERFORM IN

SPIRIT ANIMAL

FAVORITE THING FROM THE ’90s

The Clash

Philadelphia Chicago

“We should start

faxing again.

I mean, that

was just fun.”

“I really miss

answering machines.

I like coming home and

listening to messages;

it’s very satisfying.”

“Mine is probably a

kangaroo.”

“I would say mine is

a Siamese cat, a very

vocal animal.”

FAVORITE SLEATER-KINNEY SONG TO PERFORM LIVE

“Bury Our Friends” “Entertain”

Kate Bush

In this scene, Cry Baby

tries to buy Angelita a

tampon from a dispenser

in one of the school’s rose-

colored bathrooms — but it

turns out to be empty. Her

only option? Toilet paper.

Martinez believes it’s a

standout scene because of

how it relates to the larger

conversation surrounding

women’s health care and

reproductive rights, while

also highlighting the

importance of “finding

people who are like-minded,

supportive and empathetic.

There’s always someone

anxiously waiting to wreak

havoc.” —ILANA KAPLAN

“Nurse’s Office” soundtracks

a visually striking ballet,

choreographed by Brian

Friedman, of cloned, flame-

haired nurses who are part

of the principal’s corrupt

staff and have caught

Cry Baby and her friend

Angelita. Dancing around

the room, using stretchers

as props, the nurses

restrain and drug the girls

to maintain control over

the students’ minds.

“They are representative

of humans in our society

who abuse their power and

privilege for selfish gain,”

says Martinez. Exposing

them “was a goal of mine.”

From a young age, Martinez

was told not “to give

boys the wrong idea” by

dressing provocatively. On

“Strawberry Shortcake,”

she uses that message as

ammunition. As the song

plays, Cry Baby portrays a

topless Marie Antoinette-

like figure sitting atop a

giant strawberry shortcake

while boys with pointy teeth

crawl toward her, eating

the cake as they go. “It’s

representative of how [a

female] body is looked at

by society,” she says, “as a

dessert, instead of a work

of art that should be

respected and valued.”

the beat

IT TAKES TWO

VERSUS

In 2015, Sleater-Kinney returned from a decadelong hiatus

with the hard-hitting No Cities to Love. The members all

agreed on one thing: Don’t let the next one take another 10

ye ars. Four ye ars later, the ac t ha s rele as e d it s ninth album ,

The Center Won’t Hold, this time on New York-based indie

label Mom + Pop. Produced by St. Vincent, the set is Sleater-

K inney ’s mo s t urgent , and is als o the la s t with longtime

drummer Janet Weiss, who left the group in July. But now,

co-founders/lyricists Carrie Brownstein and Corin Tucker

are more dedicated to the band, and their friendship, than

ever — despite their few differences. —LYNDSEY HAVENS

Corin Tucker Carrie Brownstein

FAVORITE ST.VINCENT SONG

“Masseduction” “Strange Mercy”

BANDMATE’S BIGGEST QUIRK

“The oat milk is

strong. She basically

works for Oatly!”

“Right now, her

overalls.”

42 BILLBOARD | AUGUST 24, 2019

Don’t Let Them Eat Cake Attack Of The Evil Nurses Girls Just Wanna Support

Melanie Martinez makes her directorial debut with

an eye-popping film about teenage terrors