Caleb Kopta Has No Idea What He’s Doing
Interview by Alyssa Goldberg
Kopta wants to take it all in — as it comes, of course. He wants his music to be intentional, following in the footsteps of artists like Harry Styles who “create a world” around their artistic vision.
Photo: Ari Reiser
When I hopped on the phone with Pittsburgh-based singer-songwriter Caleb Kopta, I didn’t expect us to talk for two hours, but the conversation felt effortlessly personal. Granted, he did warn me: “Before we get into this, I talk a lot.” Another call came through on his end at the start of our own, but according to Kopta, “Moral people get up at 11.” So, he declined the interruption and we continued chatting, immorally of course, granted it was 10am on a Friday. We spoke in April, the morning after the release of his single “Heart Attack.” His excitement rang through in his voice, but he seemed calm and collected. Little did I know, he was pacing in circles the entire time, unable to sit still after a restless night tracking streams.
Kopta’s newest single “Forgiveness” was released Friday (which was also Kopta’s 24th birthday), a song he wrote two and a half years ago while auditioning for The Voice in L.A. While other contestants were practicing to get on the show, Kopta decided to use the time to foster his creativity. “I was like, no way. I’m here for a month in this hotel room, I could sit here and spend the whole time writing songs. So that’s what I did,” Kopta said. He was coming out of a period of time in 2019 where he felt like every song he wrote was “just garbage.” He’d send tracks to his manager or friends and be met with disapproval every time, but was finally struck with inspiration for “Forgiveness.” Kopta described this sudden wit as a “Justin Timberlake moment,” where he just started singing in a high-pitched voice with “all the sounds of the 80s shining through.”
After not moving past the blind auditions on The Voice, Kopta landed in a “really weird place” where he wasn’t sure what his contracts allowed him to post on social media, so he decided to “disappear,” but not in a way where he actually wanted to. “It was more like, I don’t know what the right move to make here is,” he told PLEASER. “So, I'm just gonna write songs right now and come up with something. And hopefully, when it's time to put those songs out, I can come in swinging. People will be like, where did this guy come from?”
Kopta continued to build on the melody and chorus he’d been working on to create “Forgiveness,” but when the pandemic hit in 2020, the song still felt unfinished. Regardless of whatever edits he’d attempt to make, nothing sounded just right, so he placed the song on the backburner. “I didn't expect COVID to happen, just like everybody else,” said Kopta. “So like, that literally changed all those plans that I didn't have anyways.” Lockdowns took a toll on his music and wellbeing – left frustrated and in a funk, he decided to take a break from releasing music. “I lived a version of life. I was a version of myself that I didn't like, and that I know I don't want to be ever again,” Kopta shared. “It was very good in a lot of ways, because it was a good experience to realize that I had the chance to be somebody that I didn't like. I had the chance to grow during this time, where, maybe realistically, that was the best opportunity that I could have had to learn how to grow and become the person that I want to be.”
Now, Kopta has reached a place in which he’s ready to share the song with others. “Forgiveness” is about a time in your life when you feel like you’ve been continuously letting people down, and finally realizing that “people are just people” and deserve forgiveness and grace. On the track, he sings, “It’s hard for me to stand up and admit it / but I’m on my knees, I know I need forgiveness.” In a conversation between Kopta with a friend, he told Kopta, “This could be about these last few years you’ve lived where you’ve really dropped the ball. It could be you asking everyone that you know is there for you and supports you for their forgiveness.” Kopta needed to work through these feelings by writing “Forgiveness,” and deciding to share it with the world has helped push him out of his funk and into a new era.
Within the music industry, Kopta often finds himself around people who are very conscious of how to grow their brand, which is something he’s taken note of. As of late, his big inspiration is Harry Styles. “I love the idea of creating a theme park around a brand. I don’t think there’s a lot of brands or artists that could do that and pull it off super well,” said Kopta. “Everything [Styles] does, I’m like, ‘Wow, I wanna do exactly what you’re doing.’” In a Styles-like fashion, Kopta aspires to create a world around his music bigger than just “good aesthetics.” Kopta’s vision includes six songs that will fall under ‘have you seen my heart?’ – an alluding sentence that can be found in all his social media bios. “Forgiveness” and “Heart Attack” are the first of the series, so he hopes to release four more singles this year, all related to the themes of unrequited love, relationships, and self-reflection.
Artists like Charlie Puth are also leading the way for Kopta to shape his own image. Puth has established a strong following on TikTok, where fans can get a deeper glimpse into his personality and even see him break down his creative process. Rather than just focusing on aesthetics, Kopta hopes to emulate Puth’s ability to use social media to further establish himself as an artist. Beyond admiring his social media presence, Kopta appreciates Puth’s commitment to “printing things and moving on.” Kopta can be self-critical of his work and over-edit to the point of exhaustion, whereas Puth will stick with a certain sound and build a song around it. “He commits to a sound he likes when he hits the button and that's the sound that he uses. I think there's a reason why he has to do that,” Kopta explains. “Like, you get to a place where you could sit and tweak these things all day long. But like, at the end of the day, what really matters is committing to the process and not second guessing yourself. Don't spend all your time second guessing yourself.”
He’s adjusted his creative process, allowing himself time to sit with a track before rushing to send it to his friends or manager for second opinions. “I have the intuition to know if a song is good or not,” Kopta said. “The problem is that I don’t think you get it the day after you write the song. I think that’s something that takes time.” After waiting a few weeks, Kopta is able to gain clarity and see the song more objectively. “At that point, I’m able to tell if this is even good for myself, or if I was just excited to send this song off to everybody because I just wrote it,” Kopta explained.
Our phone call took a detour into all things non-music related, spilling into the sunny Friday afternoon. When we were ready to hang up, Kopta prepared himself to “do stuff he hates,” like texting everyone in his phone to stream his new song. And he actually did do this – I know because a few hours later, he texted me the link to it too.
Kopta is a rock star bound to happen. Regardless of how lost he lets himself get along the way, he has a vision, and his happy-go-lucky approach has led him to producing a summer hit. Stream “Forgiveness” now, because I guarantee you’re going to want to bump this in your summer playlists.
Photo: Ari Reiser
KOPTA’S LATEST SINGLE “FORGIVENESS” IS OUT NOW. STREAM HERE.
