How Coco & Clair Clair Found Their Way Back To The Fun

Sometimes the best way to move forward is by tuning out the noise. For Coco & Clair Clair, that meant taking a step back after 2024's Girl to reset, rebuild, and rediscover the joy of making music. "Life is so good when you don't have a constant chorus of outside opinions pulling you in different directions," says Clair Clair. "For the first time in a long time, I wake up every day itching to get into the studio."

The Atlanta-native alt hip-hop duo first made waves in the late 2010s with their earworm-y lo-fi tracks like “Popstar” and “Crushcrushcrush,” carving out a lane somewhere between bedroom pop and indie rap. Known for their playful approach to songwriting and airy vocals, Coco & Clair Clair have built a cult following of e-girls and manic pixie dream girls alike by turning the messy realities of modern-day girlhood into effortlessly catchy anthems.

That renewed sense of freedom is all over "Coldplay," out today, and its follow-up "One One," arriving Aug. 7, the pair's first new music in nearly two years and the first taste of their latest sonic era. Witty, carefree, and full of the sharp lyricism they've become known for, the singles capture the duo's signature mix of humor, honesty, and offbeat charm. Ahead of the release of "Coldplay" — the first of two new singles releasing this month — we caught up over email with Coco & Clair Clair about getting back into the studio, being inspired by dealing with “nimrods,” and why taking a step back ultimately pushed them forward.

What did it feel like getting back into the studio and creating together again?

Clair Clair: So good, it feels like a fresh start. Our last album and the tour that followed both happened at such a fast pace, and it became clear that we needed to reorient. We needed a new team, like, immediately, but we also needed the space to ask ourselves what we actually wanted and the kind of people we wanted to build that with. Having the time to slow down and make those decisions for ourselves has been really inspiring. Life is so good when you don't have a constant chorus of outside opinions pulling you in different directions! So even though we've been pretty quiet for the last two years, I honestly think they've been some of our most productive years yet. I'm really proud of these new songs, and for the first time in a long time, I wake up every day itching to get into the studio.

Coco: It felt really great! The European tour we did last year for Girl almost killed us for more reasons than three. We quite literally had to rebuild ourselves from the ground up and decide what we even want out of this sick world called The Music Industry. Taking that time to reflect, grow, shed what didn't serve us anymore, and to come full circle to being right back where we belong (in the studio) was a really humbling and powerful journey... one that I will be grateful for for eternity because now I feel like we're making music that feels so authentic to ourselves, and in turn it's so much fun again. Like Miley said, "They tried to kill us!" But like Britney said, "Now I'm stronger than yesterday.”

What inspired “Coldplay” and “One One”?

Coco: "One One" was inspired by a couple of nimrods, probably, and our love for making amazing music. "Coldplay" had similar inspiration, but the nimrods were far behind us at this point.

Clair Clair: The chorus of "Coldplay" was actually inspired by a night out with Coco. We almost always end up having a sleepover after we go out, and there have been so many nights where we've found ourselves lying in one of our driveways or wandering around the neighborhood at two in the morning. Lying in the driveway at night and looking up at the stars after a few vodka sodas is a very specific suburban delicacy.

During the two years away from the release cycle, what did you discover about yourselves and your creative process?

Coco: I've been trying to write more "melodically," if that makes sense. I feel like Future is so good at this, Young Thug, too. And when I listened to old songs of ours, I always wished I played a bit more with my flow. After maaaannnyyyy drunk freestyles, I feel more confident experimenting there. I've also realized that activities that clear my head really get the creative juices flowing; I took up painting and meditating last year to "heal my inner child" lol, and can really see a correlation in the freedom I feel creatively in music and writing.

Clair Clair: I've realized I've become a lot more comfortable with my voice. Over time, I've gotten better at understanding the range that feels the most natural (or realistic) for me, and that's changed the way I write melodies. On both of these new songs, my vocals are pretty raw with little to no processing on them, and realizing that could actually work was exciting. I also think we've both loosened up quite a bit. We were already pretty loosey-goosey and down for whatever, but our recent time in the studio has felt even more open, really lighthearted and easy breezy, and I think that comes through in these songs.

What are you most excited for fans to hear or experience with these new songs?

Clair Clair: These two songs feel really different from anything we've made before, so I'm excited for people to hear another side of us and, hopefully, have as much fun listening to them as we had making them. I'm also excited that both tracks were produced by people we'd been fans of for years but had never worked with before. Shout out to Josh Mehling (of Shelly) and Yoni Wolf (of WHY?), love ya!

Coco: Yessss, it was so fun to broaden our pool of collaborators with these two songs, and I'm also excited for the fans to see another side of us and our growth. Both of these songs were almost recorded on two completely different beats than we ended up using, but they almost intuitively found their homes where they are now. Once we tried the lyrics out on these beats, it sort of just clicked and made so much sense, like the words were always supposed to be on these specific tracks. I hope it clicks as well for the real ones!

Can we expect more music soon?

Coco: Yes, an album is in the works...but let's have some fun with some random singles first, shall we? xx