The Cinematic Introspection of William Mcgee

The Cinematic Introspection of William Mcgee

William Mcgee may be 16 years of age, but his imaginative reveries are cinematic and timeless.  This House Isn’t A Home is the debut EP presented by William Mcgee – ethereal, emotional, and ultimately cathartic.  With songs that will haunt your senses long after the EP concludes, This House Isn’t A Home is sure to enrapture music fans all across the world.  Highwire Daze recently caught up with William Mcgee to find out more about his introspective auditory artistry.  Read on…

We’re here with William Mcgee to talk about his new This House Isn’t a Home EP. First of all, where are you based out of and what is your local music scene like there?
I’m in Pittsburgh, and there’s actually a very nice community of underground artists and lots of bands because my brother actually does music. So, I’ve been around a lot of smaller bands, and I’ve gone to see their music, and it’s a very supportive place for music.

How long have you been writing and recording music and how old are you now?
Well, right now I just turned 16, but I’ve always been writing songs on the ukulele and all that since I was 10. But I actually started releasing my first song and all that when I was 13. And then it’s just all been from there.

Is there any overall story or concept behind the EP title, This House Isn’t a Home?
Yeah, so when I was making that title, like a lot of my art, I wanted it to be up for the listeners perception and how they want to apply that to their life. If they want the title to really mean for them, This House Isn’t a Home, then that’s what it can mean for them. But it can also be a metaphor. Like, this house meaning something isn’t like a home. Like, this environment isn’t a safe place for them. And with the whole EP, I just wanted to be a story of – kind of feeling of being uncomfortable with where you are in your life.

Who is the dog featured on the cover of your album?
That’s my dog, Crystal. We got her in 2016.

Does the dog have any idea that the doggy is now an album cover star?
I showed her, but, like, she didn’t care.

No, I don’t think a dog would. But we love our doggies nevertheless, so.
Yeah!

Let’s go through the album and talk about some of the songs. It opens with, It’s Been a Year Since I Left. Tell me about that. It’s like a letter written to somebody.
Throughout the whole EP, I wanted it to be like a storyline with the song. I wanted a good intro song, but I wanted to set it with a message to that person that you haven’t spoken to in a while as it leads into the rest of the songs. So, I just thought… And especially just naming something as simple as, It’s Been A Year Since I Left, and then repeating that through the song, I thought really set a clear message of what I was talking about.

The next song is, It Still Hurts.
So, It Still Hurts, that was the first song that really got me to make the EP and all that. And that song, it’s just really what the title is, It Still Hurts. It’s about losing someone that you really had such a close bond with, and it just hurts in a way that you can’t even really describe.

Soul is up next.
So that one is kind of in conflict with, It Still Hurts. It’s just about not knowing why you’re really liking somebody when they do so many things that don’t really intertwine good with you. I don’t know how to describe it. It’s just like you don’t know why you like someone. You just like them and you don’t know why.

Cross Your Mind. Let’s talk about that one.
The big question of the song is, do I Cross Your Mind? And it’s just hoping that person knows that they really did hurt you. And it’s just wanting that clarity that they are… Like, I’m on their mind.

And of course, Dog at Your Door. Is that about your dog, Crystal?
Well, yes, I actually, I had her in mind when I was writing that. But that song, it’s like I use the term, Dog at Your Door. I don’t think it’s really used that much, but I really like that term because dogs are very loyal to their owner and especially someone they love. I used that as a metaphor of, I really like this person and they don’t really care for me, but I’m still loyal to them and I’m still waiting at the door like a dog.

And then the last song on the EP, The Cabin. Tell me a little about that one.
So that song, funny enough, I wrote that song inspired by Frankenstein because I was reading Frankenstein in my English class, so I wrote about it. In the actual book, Frankenstein, his owner brought him up and then abandoned him and it just turned him to look insane to the public view. I applied it to my own life, but I also use that for inspiration.

Have you played live or have toured or is that something you would like to do in the future?
I’ve actually never toured or anything. I’ve never really played a headline show or anything. I’ve done open mics here and there, but I’ve never actually done anything like that. And it’d be very much such a dream to actually tour and see the people that listen to my music and actually connect with them. It’s been such a big dream for so long.

If you could open for any band either now or from the past, who would it be and why?
Oh, my gosh, there’s so many. I love, The Neighborhood, especially. Especially when I was making earlier in my music, they had a very big influence on my music and it would just be such a dream because honestly, their music’s so sick.

David Lynch, the film director, just passed away and your music reminds me a lot of him for some reason, very cinematic. Are you a fan of David Lynch or cinema at all?
That was really unfortunate and sad when I found out about that. But I’ve always liked movies and especially the stuff he’s directed.

What is your favorite horror movie of all time and why?
I have so many. I really do love horror movies. This is really basic, but I really loved The Conjuring.  I think it’s just because a lot of horror movies like that have come out recently. The plot is so predictable. And I thought that one actually kept me hooked into the movie where I was actually entertained, and it actually was scary.

Back to you or your brother, actually you said you had a brother who does music. Tell me about that.
He was in a program called School of Rock and it’s basically like lessons. And from there he actually was very talented at guitar. He started multiple bands and then he’s in a band right now. I think they’re called 40 Winks. It’s that they’re actually super good. And I think that he’s played some headline shows, he’s been doing all that and he’s been very supportive in helping me out. Like tell me, “What’s this?” Or, “What’s this music software?” What I can do in my future. But yeah, he’s always been supportive and he’s super talented.

What would you like a listener to remember the most after hearing your music for the very first time?
I want people to listen to my music, I just want them to take in consideration their self and what the music means to them, how it applies to their life. My goal of making music is just to help anybody in any way I can. And I know I’m not there physically, but if I can put out a song and that song can really resonate with someone, that just means the world to me.

Do you have any message to a 16-year-old kid who is doing music, who’s reading this now?
I would just say be yourself and don’t really listen to what anybody else has to say because there’s always going to be people around you that are like, “Oh, why are you doing that?” Because they don’t have the same interests that you have, but it’s like you’re never going to really pursue your dream if you just are scared of what people are going to say or think.

What’s up next for you in this new year?
I definitely hope to get a few more songs out and I really want to be able to play a few headline shows this year, if that’s possible. That’d be so awesome. And just keep connecting with my followers, my fans, make lots of new music.

And last question.  If you were invited to cover a song by Billie Eilish on a tribute album, what song would you want to do and why?
Well, that is a great question, especially because I love Billie Eilish so much. But I would actually really love to cover her song, Hostage, because I think it’s such an underground song by her. A lot of people know it, but also a lot of people don’t know it and it’s just such a beautiful song. It’s beautiful lyrics and it’d be perfect.

(Interview by Ken Morton)

William Mcgee on Instagram