Digital Journal describes her sultry vocals as “reminiscent of Nicole Scherzinger of The Pussycat Dolls meets Tove Lo.” For the past two years, Pagentri has taken Nashville by storm, giving a new meaning to “the mystique” and dual personality. By day, she goes by Rachel Tripp, an entrepreneur and Regional Community Outreach Lead at Jammber Music—and by night, she is on stage performing as Pagentri.
Last month, Pagentri released her latest single, “Magnetic,” which addresses the importance of relationships, addressing toxicity we seem to read about all too often. Dating in 2020 is certainly more difficult than it would appear to be. Why? It’s so easy to “talk a big game,” but when the truth comes to shove, these are emotional games that really mess with a person’s head.
True Hollywood Talk spoke with Pagentri about her new single.
True Hollywood Talk: Welcome back, Pagentri! Thank you for returning to talk about your most powerful single, yet. Magnetic paints a picture of difficulties in forming meaningful relationships. What inspired you to create this song and its accompanying video?
Pagentri: The idea for the song ignited from a conversation with my girlfriend about a guy she had just started dating. She rolled her eyes and said, “why does he constantly leave me on read?!”
This later became the inspiration for the opening line of Magnetic. Dating in today’s mobile and social media world is difficult and exhausting. There are so many games and distractions and no one tries to have a truly genuine human connection. I wanted Magnetic and the video to portray this message. This false reality of dating causes us to tolerate disrespect and see it as “normal.” I’ve seen so many friends (myself included) continue to fall into toxic relationships and say “well that’s the way dating is supposed to be.” Standards don’t need to be mind games and disrespect. I’ve recently realized it’s a cry for help to find your self-worth.
These new dating standards need to be reversed and we need to start asking ourselves “do I deserve this?” Stop hiding behind your phone, running from the difficult topics and have a real conversation with yourself.
THT: How does this song fall in line with your ‘Pagentri’ alias (or perhaps departs from it?) Why is this a good thing?
Pagentri: Pagentri has multiple layers as an artist: vulnerability, sexuality, and independence. This song definitely combines all of the above. I’ve definitely struggled to realize my self-worth and struggle to have tough conversations with myself and others. I’d make excuses and fall back on people that I knew didn’t deserve my time or energy. This song confesses those vulnerabilities. We all have our faults, but I’ve recently realized not everyone will like you and that’s ok.
Why do you need their approval anyway? Now the independent girl comes in 😉
The chorus is a confession of independence… “Empty words you told me, I wasn’t your only, stuck in your ways, tryna keep your pace, ain’t tryna chase, and I don’t wanna play no games.” This is the Pagentri who is confident and knows her self-worth. This is something I’ve fully discovered throughout quarantine, and it has done wonders for me as an artist and my creative process.
With all my music I always add a flavor of sex appeal, that’s just who I am. Take it or leave it. It’s not meant to be explicit but honest. It’s a message for all women that confidence and being intuned with your sexuality is a beautiful thing. I think a lot of women struggle with this and struggle with being honest with themselves. There is nothing wrong with being vocal. Sometimes that will turn heads, but then again not everyone is going to like you and except your art 😉
THT: How has your ability to write music changed over the past 11 months with COVID-19 still at large?
Pagentri: When COVID hit, I went into a depression. It was such a strange time for me creatively and I felt so uninspired. All the vibrant things I had on a daily basis quickly disappeared. After a few weeks, I realized I had to look for other outlets for inspiration so I started listening to A LOT of audio books and journaling. This helped me become so much more open to who I am as an artist and person.
I learned so many lessons from the voices of geniuses ranging from Alicia Keys, Brené Brown, Rachel Hollis, and more. These brilliant women helped me discover the power of vulnerability and I’ve let that blossom in my art. My journaling started from a daily exercise explained in the book “The Artist’s Way,” and I started writing morning pages every day. Morning pages are the first thing you do every day and it’s just a mindless brain dump. You are supposed to make any sense and put everything out on paper. Re-reading these pages brings me a lot of inspiration.
THT: Why does the entertainment industry need lyrics like this, now more than ever?
Pagentri: I think we all need a wake up call of what a relationship is…if that’s with a significant other, friend or family. Magnetic paints a picture of a toxic relationship and is a cry for help fallen into the same patterns. We all need to stop being selfish and form meaningful relationships.
THT: If you could have your song featured in any commercial, TV show, film, and/or associated with a brand, who/what would it be and why?
Pagentri: There is no specific show that comes to mind, but I think the perfect audience would be reality TV viewers, if that’s a show on a major network or MTV. I believe these viewers can really relate to the song’s message and the production. It’s all about making an impact with your music to the right audience.
THT: What do you want listeners to take away from your new single/video? How do you suggest fans listen and take this latest release in?
Pagentri: Magnetic is made for that playlist you have to kick off your weekend. If you’re single or searching for love, I want it to speak to you (PS- good things never come to those who are looking for them ;).
Don’t settle, have confidence, and know your worth. Don’t go chasing for games and disrespect. Breakthrough the static and let this song set the tone for a great night out or in. Let it set the tone and standard to focus on YOU!
