Cayley Spivey | |
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![]() Cayley Spivey performing as Small Talks at Voltage Lounge in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in February 2019. | |
Background information | |
Birth name | Cayley Marie Spivey[1] |
Born | January 21, 1998 |
Origin | Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, U.S. |
Genres | Indie rock, Dream Pop, Pop Punk, Indie pop |
Years active | 2017 | –present
Labels | Common Grounds Records |
Website | www |
Cayley Marie Spivey is an American indie rock, pop punk, and indie pop guitarist and singer-songwriter from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.[2] She began her career performing as a solo project known as Small Talks, recording and touring as a three-piece band. Under the Small Talks name, Spivey released the EP Until It Turns to Petals in 2017.[3] The project's first full-length studio album A Conversation Between Us was released on February 1, 2019, via Common Ground Records.[4]
In August 2020, Spivey announced she would be releasing new music full time under her own name and retiring the Small Talks moniker.[5] In conjunction with that announcement, Spivey released "SFU", her first single using her given name.[6]
Career
Cayley Spivey began writing acoustic songs in her bedroom by the age of 15, and soon began booking local shows at coffee shops in her native Myrtle Beach, S.C.[7]
As Small Talks (2015–2019)
Originally formed as a three-piece band on May 31, 2015,[8] to perform her songs live, Spivey created the solo project Small Talks and played a number of club and house shows around Myrtle Beach, developing a strong local following.
In January 2017, the band was signed to California-based label Common Ground Records[9] and released her debut EP Until It Turns To Petals, featuring the singles "New Dork Pity" and "Cop Car". That same year, the band was named co-winners of the "Skullcandy StayLoud Showdown" at the Knitting Factory in Williamsburg, Brooklyn,[10] headlined by Canadian band July Talk, earning themselves ten dates on the 2017 Van's Warped Tour.[11]
Over a number of months on tour, the backing members of the band left for a variety of personal reasons, leaving Small Talks as a solo project for Spivey. As a solo musician performing under the existing band name, Spivey released her full-length debut recording A Conversation Between Us on February 1, 2019, produced by Eli Strobeck. The album, an LP with more pop influence than her indie-styled debut EP, spun the singles "Oceans", "Quiet Sounds", and "Nicotine & Tangerines".[citation needed]
The band has toured extensively, opening for a variety of acts including Can't Swim, Broadside, With Confidence, Chaos Chaos, The Regrettes, and Shortly, as well as headlining their own dates and performing at festivals such as Bled Fest in Howell, Michigan, and The Fest in Gainesville, Florida.
As Cayley Spivey (2020-present)
On August 5, 2020, Spivey announced that she would be releasing music for the first time under her given name, and retiring the Small Talks moniker for good.[12] The move was to lean more into pop music over indie rock, and to increase her chances at success. "Since the project Small Talks has always been me," she explains, "I realized it's not going to help if I'm constantly mistaken for a band."[13]
At midnight Eastern Time on August 14, 2020, Spivey released her first single under her own name, entitled "SFU," meaning "so fucked up."[14]
According to Spivey, the single "is an anthem for being trapped in a less than ideal situation through the lens of a hopeless romantic. I have a habit of romanticizing things that aren't good for me whenever I'm not ready to let it go. This is me sharing my story of being stuck in a loop until I could see clearly enough to remove love's blinders and walk away. Love can make me do crazy things, this song was my way of reflecting on why that is."[15]
On October 26, 2020, Spivey released her second single under her own name, "Not Over You Yet".[16] Her third single, "Cross The Line", was released on March 19, 2021.[17] The singles "Bad For Each Other", "Ordinary" (feat. DazyFace), and "Backseat Boyfriend" were released during the winter of 2021 and 2022.[18]
Personal life
Spivey identifies as non-binary, and uses any pronouns.[19] She also identifies as pansexual, and refers to her sexuality – as well as her gender – as an integral piece of her sound, stating "a lot of my songs are inspired by relationships that I've had, and that comes from me being LGBTQ."[20] She has embraced viral social media video app TikTok[6] both as a music artist and as an LGBTQ performer, garnering 164,000 followers in her first year on the platform and increasing to 275,000 by spring 2021.[21]
Accompanying band
Current members
- Cayley Spivey – vocals, guitar
- Emma Oakley – guitar
- Tessa Reid – bass
- Sam Partridge – drums
Past members
- Justin Charette – drums
- Tyler Lankford – bass
- Kenny Kelly – bass
- Blake Byrd – drums
- Doug Smith – bass
- Tom LeBeau – drums
Discography
Singles
- "New Dork Pity" (2017) (as Small Talks)
- "Cop Car" (2017) (as Small Talks)
- "Oceans" (2019) (as Small Talks)
- "Quiet Sounds" (2019) (as Small Talks)
- "Nicotine & Tangerines" (2019) (as Small Talks)
- "SFU" (2020)
- "Not Over You Yet" (2020)
- "Cross The Line" (2021)
- "Bad For Each Other" (2021)
- "Ordinary" (feat. DazyFace) (2021)
- "Backseat Boyfriend" (2022)
- "Idol" (2023)
- "Movies" (2023)
- "ILY" (2023)
- "She's Pretty" (2023)
Studio albums
- A Conversation Between Us (2019) (as Small Talks)
EPs
- Until It Turns To Petals (2017) (as Small Talks)
- Quiet Sounds (2018) (as Small Talks)[22]
References
- ^ "COME BACK AND HAUNT ME". ASCAP. American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
- ^ Aikins, Gabriel (31 January 2019). "PREMIERE: Small Talks wants to chat on new LP 'A Conversation Between Us'". Substream Magazine. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
- ^ "Small Talks – Until It Turns To Petals • Punk Rock Theory". Punk Rock Theory. 16 March 2017. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
- ^ Serra, Maria (6 December 2018). "Can't Swim announce tour dates and other news you might have missed today". Alternative Press. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
- ^ @CayleySpivey (5 August 2020). "MY FIRST SINGLE "SFU" COMES OUT AUGUST 14TH UNDER MY OWN NAME 🤍Presave it here" (Tweet). Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b "Damn, It's So Fucked Up: On Being a Queer Music Artist With Cayley Spivey". grain of salt. 5 October 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
- ^ "Small Talks discusses her online thrift store, writing poetry and her new single "Quiet Sounds"". Stitched Sound. 11 July 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
- ^ "Small Talks | Biography, Albums, Streaming Links". AllMusic. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
- ^ "Small Talks Sign To Common Ground Records, Announce EP 'Until It Turns To Petals'". umusicians. 1 March 2017.
- ^ "STAYLOUD SHOWDOWN TAKES A BITE OUT OF THE BIG APPLE". Stayloud.skullcandy.com.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Heinz, Natasha (8 May 2018). "Over 150 local bands added to the final Vans Warped Tour". Alternative Press. Retrieved 9 September 2019.
- ^ @CayleySpivey (5 August 2020). "MY FIRST SINGLE "SFU" COMES OUT AUGUST 14TH UNDER MY OWN NAME 🤍Presave it here" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ "Interview: Cayley Spivey is Ready to Embrace Going Solo". The Alternative. 14 October 2020. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
- ^ @CayleySpivey (13 August 2020). "SFU COMES OUT AT MIDNIGHT!! I'M STAYING UP TO PLAY THE SONG EARLY ON IG LIVE 11:45PM EST AND LISTEN WITH YA'LL!!..." (Tweet). Retrieved 1 May 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ "CAYLEY SPIVEY ANNOUNCES SOLO REBRAND AND DEBUT SINGLE "SFU" OUT AUGUST 14TH". Volatileweekly.com. Archived from the original on 18 December 2020. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
- ^ "CAYLEY SPIVEY RELEASES NEW SINGLE "NOT OVER YOU YET" – Volatile Weekly". Archived from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
- ^ "CAYLEY SPIVEY RELEASES NEW SINGLE "CROSS THE LINE" – Volatile Weekly". Archived from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
- ^ "Cayley Spivey". Cayley Spivey. Archived from the original on 12 May 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
- ^ @CayleySpivey (8 June 2021). "I came out as non-binary today. Any pronouns are welcome, I don't care how I'm perceived. ❤🩹" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Belcher, Sara (26 April 2019). "Cayley Spivey Is Not With The Band—She Is The Band". Nylon. Archived from the original on 26 April 2019.
- ^ "Cayley Spivey (@cayleyspivey) TikTok | Watch Cayley Spivey's Newest TikTok Videos". TikTok. Retrieved 13 August 2020.
- ^ Small Talks – Quiet Sounds (2018, Vinyl), retrieved 1 May 2021