Kacey Musgraves Stays Grounded with Reformation
These days, Kacey Musgraves is stopping to smell the flowers. As she comes off the heels of her sixth studio album, Deeper Well, and kicks off her national tour this month, Musgraves returns to her grounded roots in all facets of her expression: musically, spiritually and visually.
On September 16, the singer/songwriter is adding fashion designer to her resumé, launching a collaboration with sustainable brand Reformation that’s perfect for a cottage getaway in the countryside or perhaps to a poetry reading in Fort Greene. Maybe it’s not made for the club, but neither are some people anymore, like Kacey, who are in their 30s. It’s made for slowing down and growing up.
Like the worlds she builds with her albums, Musgraves was able to focus on every little detail when designing the collection with Reformation, down to every single button placement, hook and zipper. There are pastoral dresses and denim separates, ethereal blouses, a custom floral print and leather riding boots — made with recycled and regenerative materials.
As we all seek the feeling of being grounded in an increasingly chaotic world, Musgraves hopes her collab will instill some peace within wearers. “The things that I’m seeking right now, in clothing and in fashion and also music and art, is just the feeling of feeling calm and grounded, because this world is so fucking crazy right now,” she tells PAPER.
On the day before she kicked off her tour, PAPER found some time to chat with Musgraves about her connection to music and fashion, Saturn Returns and finding inspiration in our shared human experience of joy, loss and love.
Hi Kacey! How are you? Doesn’t your tour literally start tomorrow?
Yes! The first tour day is tomorrow.
How are you feeling about it?
I am so excited. It’s been a minute since I have been heavily on tour, so I’m going to get back into the swing of it. It’s going to be a beautiful show.
I’m going here in New York in November!
Yay! Those are some of the shows I’m looking forward to the most. I just feel like, in New York, we always have incredible crowds. They show up, and they like to put effort into their clothes.
What was it like working on your first fashion collaboration?
It was so incredibly fun. I’m a very detail-oriented person, so I feel like I thrive in a situation like this. I love nothing more than shaping a vision little-by-little until you get it just the way you want it. And Reformation was great, letting me just get as detail-oriented as I really wanted to with every little thing down to every single button placement, hook, zipper we’re using. It was so fun to get so involved in the fit and feel of all these pieces. I would say I’ve been working on this for the better part of a year, and so it’s really cool to see it finally come to fruition.
Oh my gosh, that’s a long time!
I know, right? It’s almost like creating an album [which] takes about that much time too, and I definitely approached it in largely the same way: what feels authentic to me. And I approached it in the sense of wanting to create clothes that I would actually be interested in wearing.
It seems like a really good fit.
I’m really excited for everyone to see the collection. I’ve never done this before. Of course, like, I designed my merch and every piece of it put all of myself into those things. But as far as designing a collection like this, this is my first time, and I really appreciate that it’s with a company that also cares about the Earth. They definitely try to be as sustainable as possible. I’m grateful for this collab.
I’m always interested in the connection between music and what people are listening to at the moment and how that affects how they get dressed.
Fashion is definitely another layer in your expression. And much like my musical taste, the things I gravitate toward, in a fashion sense, come in cycles. There might be some chapters where I’m really interested in my Western roots, and I’m wearing my cowboy boots again. Sometimes I get a little bit further away from that, and I’m into something else. And then in the middle of all that, I’m sort of just running around in athleisure.
How do you think the collection reflects the music and the visuals of Deeper Well?
I’m a very visual person, and when I’m creating, I see chapters as like little worlds. And I love exploring how that world can come to life — all the senses, musically and visually. I’ve experimented with scents, taking songs and turning them into candles. That’s been really fun.
This [collaboration with Reformation] was another layer and piece of the puzzle, taking this aesthetic that has totally shaped this Deeper Well world and extending it into something that someone can wear. This album kind of brought me back to some of my folk and country roots, my softer side. There’s a lot of soft moments on this record, so I think these clothes are a natural reflection. It’s part cottagecore/pioneer woman, but in a modern sense, and a little bit of a feminine witch. There’s a bit of an equestrian nod in some of the pieces too.
What inspired you to dial things back and go back to your folk and country roots, especially after Star-Crossed, which was more pop-y and visually avant garde?
I have so many parts of me that are inspired by so many different sounds and things. And I change a lot, different chapters. I gravitate to different feelings and sounds, and star-crossed was definitely, I guess, harder-edged in some ways. I got to experiment with more electronic production on that record. It was really fun for me, and I think it was necessary for the kind of record that it needed to be. And that’s just what I was inspired to make at the time.
For Deeper Well, I was craving something softer and more organic and warm and a simpler palette instrumentation wise. What’s interesting is I created the record largely in New York City, which I love so much, and it’s quite a maximalist environment with humanity on 10 and colors and sounds and smells and stimuli. So I find it kind of ironic that I was able to tap into a simpler, more rural side in the middle of New York City. These clothes are a great representation of that, in this fashion world that we have played around with.
Going through my Saturn Return and living in New York and identifying with Deeper Well so much, I am always trying to feel more grounded.
Absolutely. The things that I’m seeking right now, in clothing and in fashion and also music and art, is just the feeling of feeling calm and grounded, because this world is so fucking crazy right now. It feels so out of control and chaotic sometimes. Those things that are steady, tried and true, like your favorite pair of jeans, your favorite pair of cowboy boots, the Bob Dylan record that’ll never get old, Simon and Garfunkel, your favorite coffee shop. They feel good; they’re solid, and they’re timeless. Those are the things that I’m especially craving right now.
What is it like to look back on the different eras of your life and style and music? Same Trailer Different Park to now?
I feel at once like I’m exactly the same girl, but I’ve also lived a million lifetimes since then. I’ve learned so much, and I feel like I’ve grown so much. But at my core, I do feel like I’ve really held on to who I am. I have the same friend group that I’ve had since the very beginning. I’ve got wonderful people around me, and I feel very grounded with my home life and my private life and my relationship with myself. I feel like it’s just getting better with time.
Another big force behind Deeper Well is getting into your mid-30s, clearing out and making room for only the things that completely serve you and removing resistance to growth of any kind, whether that’s your habits or friendships that might not be the most positive — whatever it is. For me, it’s always finding inspiration in that human experience. That’s the same girl that was writing Same Trailer Different Park as it is now. As my career grows and as this world gets crazier, the more it makes me want to turn inward and find inspiration in the smallest of things: human emotions, the human experience, just being alive and experiencing love and loss. That’s where I always come back to.
Available September 16 at all Reformation stores, Nordstrom and reformation.com.
Photography: Kelly Christine Sutton for Reformation
These days, Kacey Musgraves is stopping to smell the flowers. As she comes off the heels of her sixth studio album, Deeper Well, and kicks off her national tour this month, Musgraves returns to her grounded roots in all facets of her expression: musically, spiritually and visually. On September 16, the singer/songwriter is adding fashion…