Anyone who has spent serious time on the music side of TikTok already knows Jules Walcott. The vibrant redhead sat down with Playboy to talk about her new single Deserve, her upcoming album, and what it’s like to have 2 million TikTok followers.
This interview has been edited from its original format for length and clarity.
Playboy: When did your music journey begin?
Jules: I was about nine years old. I was always singing in choirs. And from there – I think I was 12, 13 – ukulele and then I got into piano and guitar, which eventually led me into singing in rock bands and metal bands. So a lot of my friends were doing that at the time. And I was just always around music doing that.
I was performing local shows. We got all the way up to playing shows with Puddle of Mudd and popular ’90s bands. That was the craziest thing for a high schooler. I was like wow, I want to do this for the rest of my life, so from there I went to school for music. Then I went on tour and eventually TikTok happened where I saw people going viral for music during the pandemic. I thought wow, I could do that. And by March 2022, I hit 1 million followers on TikTok. By November 2022, 2 million.
Playboy: You mentioned a metal band. Did you ever do the scream-singing?
Jules: Yeah. (laughs) It was cool to do. But definitely a different era of my life.
Playboy: What’s the most rewarding part of building and running your TikTok?
Jules: The connection I’ve made with fans and followers. So many people have said that my music has helped them through things. I write a lot of heartbreak songs and songs about breakups, and just things I’ve gone through. If my experiences can help somebody else, that’s just an incredible feeling. I think that’s the most rewarding thing.
And then sometimes, I run into a fan in person. I had an experience at an event we were at a few weeks ago, where we ran into a fan. We share this like connection. I feel like they know me and I know them. We haven’t even met in person, and now we’re face to face. So I love that connection that I get to make.
Playboy: How are you feeling about the release of this new song and what kind of reception are you hoping for?
Jules: I’m so excited for this release. It’s gonna be so, so fun. I feel like this is the first time where I’m really taking control of my narrative as an artist. It’s gotten a really positive response so far and it’s not even out yet, so I’m excited to see what everyone’s going to say when it is out.
Playboy: Tell us about the journey of making your upcoming album.
Jules: We recently signed to Ethika Music with the idea of releasing an album in 2025. And me and my manager thought that was a great idea. So it’s been in the works for a while. We’re still in the process of fine tuning all the songs and figuring out what’s going to be on the album, what’s not going to be on the album. But we’ve been working with some incredible producers. And just the whole concept of the album is embodying female confidence. It doesn’t matter if a man’s in your life or not. You’re still a bad bitch. Bad bitches never die. I was kind of thinking that might be the name of the album, but it’s pushing it a little bit. It’s hard because I have young fans. I don’t know if they’re going to like that, but we’ll see. I definitely want a song on the album that has that name. I think it’s just going to be so different from anything I’ve done before.
Playboy: How so?
Jules: I think just like I’m gonna go fully Jules because I’ve been a very reserved person my whole life. I’m very modest, but I think for my last music video – I filmed it with my best friend Lex Haley. She’s an incredible videographer, and we filmed a few scenes where it was just me and her. And I really trust her because she’s my best friend.
She said, “Jules, you need to look like a bad bitch in this video. Like, you need to look hot. Let’s let loose. Let’s just be Jules.” And so it was the first time that I really did that. And I saw such a difference in the music video and the response. Everyone was like, “Oh my God, she’s so confident. She’s being fully herself. Please make more content like this, more videos like this.” And I was like, wow. Let’s just see what happens. And so I feel like this album really pushes my boundaries. Some of the songs have crazy lyrics that me two years ago would never be able to say. And now I’m just like, fuck it. Let’s just put it all out there. It pushes boundaries, but in such a good classy way.
Playboy: So you talked about your fans feeling a connection with your music. Whose music makes you feel the same?
Jules: I’ve really been listening to Role Model. He’s really, really good, he just dropped an album and I can’t stop listening to it. Also, Chappell Roan – I’ve been loving her. She’s been blowing up recently. Sabrina Carpenter, Nessa Barrett. Billie, obviously, that’s my favorite artist of all time.
Playboy: What are your turn-ons?
Jules: Confidence for sure. We like a man that likes to put in effort and take control and not make me run the show. I like to sit back and let a man be a man. That’s definitely a turn on for me.
Playboy: What about turn offs?
Jules: When he asks me to pay.
Playboy: What do you think is the worst thing about modern dating?
Jules: So I’m recently single. So I’ve definitely been on a few dates seeing the scene now. The hookup culture, I don’t like it. Take me out on a date. Take me to dinner and get to know me. I think that is the worst thing right now.
I also didn’t realize how hard it would be dating when you have a following. That is something new that I’m navigating and it’s very weird. Sometimes I don’t even want to tell a guy what I do, because he’ll be like “Oh, what’s it like” or “What can I use this girl for?” I definitely don’t like that.
Playboy: One last thing. Dream scenario – you can tour with anyone. Who would it be?
Jules: Billie Eilish.
Deserve is out on all music platforms on Sept. 13, 2024.