Finding Home Again: Jeremy Zucker’s Nostalgic Dive Into Garden State
Photography by Sara Regan
After his emergence in 2015, Jeremy Zucker has steadily built a career many young artists could only dream about. His 2018 breakout hit comethru has amassed almost a billion streams on Spotify alone, has performed on huge festival stages across the globe from Lollapalooza to Reading & Leads and continues to shine at his own headline shows around the world. Mid-November, Zucker graced his Aussie fans with his presence for the first time since 2022 for his Welcome to the Garden State tour, and we were lucky enough to sit down and talk about his journey so far.
Released in August, Garden State is an ode to Zucker's childhood and hometown. Exploring the complexities of growing out of your small town, finding your feet somewhere else and everything you learn in the middle. “I just had so much to say about growing up in New Jersey. I just think there is a lot of authenticity in writing about where you come from”. It’s the kind of album that can provide solace for the homesick and relief for the dreamers.
The album opens with hometown, the first song written for the album, “I didn't really know what I was doing until I wrote hometown and then Garden State. I love talking about New Jersey and all of that, but I don't think one song can do it justice. So after that, I was like, okay, the album idea is New Jersey, hometown, growing up, and then I just had so much to say around that”. It’s simple production allows for the lyrics to really settle into your skin. It goes like, "Oh, right", bet it feels nice / Turning your back on your whole damn life / Like, oh, wow, look at you now / A little too good for your old hometown, yeah //. To me, the track, although sentimental and nostalgic, reads as the negative headnoise Zucker experiences when returning home. The whispers one might expect to hear upon finding success or searching for something bigger for yourself.
Having been releasing music for a decade now, Zucker says staying true to himself and setting creative boundaries is his most important lesson learnt so far. “I learned a lot by not trying to create something that feels a certain way, and instead just letting it out. I think also having guidelines. Making this album about New Jersey and representing me in this way, freed up my creative process a lot to not overthink it. I had very clear boundaries of where I wanted it to live.”
Track 3, surprise!, is a comforting letter to Zucker's younger self. And I've been living through your eyes / And I don't mean to ruin the surprise / But you're gonna be alright//. Accompanied by an uncomplicated guitar riff, reassures himself and the listener that just because your life might not look how you thought it would right now, doesn’t mean it won’t. “‘surprise’ is really surreal for me because it’s a letter to my younger self, who’s dream I’m literally living” Zucker told udiscovermusic. The visualizer for the track, starring and edited by Zucker, is set in the aftermath of a celebration. ‘Surprise’ balloons sag against the wall, confetti blanketing the floor and a cake with a lone candle. It depicts that sense of existentialism many experience on their birthdays. Wondering what’s next for us. As the guitar fades, Zucker leaves us with a final validation, You'll figure your shit out / No more room for pessimism, apathy, or doubt / You're gonna be alright//.
Every aspect of Garden State is handcrafted by Zucker, from the lyrics and production, to directing the accompanying visualizers and even designing the tour visuals. “I am someone that I really need to be proud of what I do and what I put out. You don't just finish a project and put it out there and never think about it again. I have really high standards for myself, like visually and creatively and aesthetically. The things that I release, I have to stand behind.” The visualizers, although simple, help to build the world Zucker describes throughout the album. A run through the neighbourhood, house parties and bike riding around town. Cinematic, reflective and drenched in nostalgia.
The most intimate of visualizers is for track 11 all i want. A deeply romantic love letter to Zucker's wife and the fear he experienced when falling in love The more everything just starts to make sense / How, like, when we first met, I was so scared just for things to change / And I was afraid I was gonna lose myself in you / And I was, I was afraid I'd let you down or hurt you / And you, you just believed in me//. The visualizer is a stagnant shot, starring Zucker and his wife. The audience flies on the wall as we watch the pair playing cards by a roaring fireplace and sharing a drink. The two got married in an intimate ceremony last year and when asked what one of the writers of one of the most romantic love songs of the decade (this is how you fall in love with Chelsea Cutler) danced to on his own wedding day, Zucker says “Our wedding was really small, We eloped and our party was at our house, and we didn't have a first dance. But we want to, in the future, renew our vows and do a big thing. Our song would probably be Planet with Water by Charlie Hickey. It was one of the first tours that she (his wife) came on the road with me. Charlie was opening, and we would always dance to it.”
As well as finding success in his solo projects, Zucker has collaborated with fellow singer-songwriter Chelsea Cutler on their wildly successful joint project brent. They released the third installment, brent iii, in November last year. “The first time Chelsea and I worked together, we just made magic. It just happens when we're together. It’s attracted a really amazing crossover audience between both of our fan bases, and we just love serving them. Whenever we get together, it's pretty effortless, and it's a nice little escape from each of our own worlds.” Following the success of the project, the pair even embarked on a joint tour ‘Brent Forever: The Tour’, across The United States and Canada.
Garden State is a coming of age album. Zucker reexamines his childhood, growing up in a small town and growing away from home. It’s his most personal project yet, with every facet authentically himself. While allowing space for his audience to see themselves within it. It’s an album for introspection and for the dreamers who want more than what might be in front of them.
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