Storm Reid has officially entered the world of music with her debut single “Clean Sweep.”
The 22-year-old, who rose to fame as an actress, gained a love for music at an early age and knew she wanted to be apart of it in some capacity. “I didn’t necessarily think that I could become an artist myself,” Reid tells The Hollywood Reporter on a recent call. The singer has been in Oklahoma City shooting the indie coming-of-age thriller Hot Year.
“I started going to the studio, playing around with friends and making records that were very unserious,” she says. “But it reaffirmed to me that I really love being in the studio and I really love making music.”
For the past eight months, Reid has working on music. It’s been a journey for the multi-hyphenate but she seems to find the busy schedule exciting instead of hectic.
As she explores sonically, Reid’s adamant about not being put in one box. “I’ve been really trying to find my sound and giving myself permission to have fun and not wait for anybody else to give me permission,” she says.
Reid is a fan of all genres of music but “Clean Sweep,” released through her independent music label 1720 Music, finds itself dabbling into pop and R&B. It’s an addictively catchy song. Reid agrees.
“Every time I hear it, I cannot stop moving and reciting the lyrics. You don’t really always get that feeling with the songs you make,” she says.
She opted to go with her gut feeling about the song and made it her debut single. “You don’t really get a visceral reaction every time, and every time I listened to “Clean Sweep” or had other people listen, they would really enjoy it,” says Reid.
“You really never know how people are going to receive anything you put in the world, but I really enjoy the record,” she continues. “I think it was a great introduction to what I’m trying to do and this is only the beginning.”
It’s certainly just the beginning. Reid already has a variety of different songs in her arsenal. She’ll go into the studio somedays with a mission. Other days, she’ll just “vibe out” and see what comes to her. By her count, she has 27 or 28 songs done. “None of them sound the same,” Reid says.
Reid understands that people are used to seeing her as her characters or through the lens of her projects but that’s not the full picture. “It’s been a really fun journey trying to figure out how I want to present myself, and how I want the world to see me,” the singer says.
“[People] don’t really know me, especially if they don’t follow me on social media,” she continues, noting that’s still only glimpse into her life. “[The music]’s really an opportunity to get to know me a little better.”
It’s hard to speak of new beginnings and not acknowledge that a show that was a big moment for Reid, HBO’s Euphoria, recently came to an end. Unfortunately fans didn’t get to see her character Gia, the younger sister to Zendaya’s Rue, in the series’ finale season. “I love Euphoria,” she says.
“I will be forever indebted to Gia and what Euphoria has done for my career. I love Zendaya. I love Rue, and I had no idea that that was going to be her fate,” the singer says. In the series finale, Zendaya’s Rue died of an fentanyl overdose after taking a laced pill from Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje’s Alamo Brown.
Reid, who had been absent throughout the show’s third season, posted a video on social media that said “Sorry, Rue. I’m busy in the stu.” The singer admits she would’ve handled the social media post differently had she known the outcome of the episode.
“I probably wouldn’t have posted the TikTok or made that my caption if I knew, but it is what it is,” she says. “At the end of the day, as much as we love it, it’s a show, so we can be attached and we can love it for what it is and it could be forever held in our hearts, but it’s also not real.”
She adds, “I think that’s where people are getting a little confused or the lines are getting a little convoluted. But I mean, hey, people are fans. It’s good to have fans, and it’s good to have people who really ride for you no matter what.”
Reid watched the entire third season, she says, and can’t say enough how much she enjoyed being apart of the first two seasons.
As for her music, the singer just hopes that find they learn more about her. She also hopes that people realize how seriously she’s taking her newfound role as a musician.
“It’s not something that I’m just doing because I can,” Reid says. “I hope people enjoy the music, but I know that everybody is entitled to their own opinion.”
She continues, “I say leave it, like it, love it. That’s not up to me.”