Following the release of her latest single ‘Look So Pretty’, LOCK Magazine had the pleasure of catching up with US singer-songwriter Ally Bakst to discuss the release and her future plans.
Hi, Ally Bakst, welcome to LOCK. For our readers, could you please tell us a little about yourself?
Hey, thanks for having me! I grew up in NYC but live in LA now and have been singing forever. I’ve always loved creating things, whether that be through painting, drawing, sculpture, photography, etc or music! Music is one of my favorite ways to express myself because it has so much depth to it. When I’m making a song, I feel like I’m building a world I can live in by combining lyrics, melodies, and production in a way that really envelopes me. I think when a soundscape captures you and the lyrical content and narrative matches, that’s when you have something truly special. I’ve been learning how to produce more seriously over the past year and a half or so, and that has opened my eyes in so many ways. That’s what I love about music the most—you’re never done learning and there’s always something new to make.
Your latest single, “Look So Pretty”, explores the idea of beauty as both protection and performance. What personal experiences inspired this theme?
As a woman, the idea and experience of beauty—having it, not having it, losing it, getting lost in it, having it projected onto you, defying it, having to hide it, letting it morph you into something grotesque, etc—is unavoidable. We live in a world that loves and hates beauty, both consciously and unconsciously. So I, like pretty much every woman on earth, have a complicated relationship with beauty as it relates not only to the exterior, but the interior as well.
The song feels intimate but also guarded. How do you balance vulnerability with self-protection in your songwriting?
Definitely, I’m not sure I know the answer. With every song I make, I do my best to follow where the initial idea leads me, even if the vulnerability it asks of me feels uncomfortable. But there’s a certain level of vulnerability that I save for only the people closest to me who earn it. I don’t feel that I need to write about my life or experiences in explicit, concrete detail to get a point across,
I actually think sometimes holding space for abstract metaphors that anyone can project their own life and vulnerabilities onto is more interesting.
You’ve described being seen as something scary. How has your relationship with visibility changed as your audience has grown?
It doesn’t really feel real, to be honest. That’s the weird part about technology, when I look at my phone I just see numbers, so none of it really registers, and I don’t think I’m at the stage where it’s too overwhelming yet. The people who really care about me and my music always show up so kindly, and that’s slowly melting my shell and making me more comfortable with the idea of being perceived. I know that inevitably as an artist you’ll be misunderstood by some people, but I’m learning to be okay with that. I understand that the version of me people are perceiving at scale isn’t the full version of me, it’s only a small dimension of who I am—I have an easier time accepting being misunderstood knowing that it’s by people who don’t know me at all. I don’t need everyone to get it, I just want to keep the people who do get it close so I can keep giving them everything I have.
The track has a hypnotic, minimalist feel while still sounding emotionally dense. How did the production process shape the emotional tone of the song?
The minimalism was key in finding the pocket of this song for sure. It’s kind of like in a horror movie when everything goes silent, suddenly there’s more suspense and emotion, like all the air was sucked out of the room. With Look So Pretty, finding that minimal pocket gave me the room I needed to create that mysterious, sort of haunting energy with the vocal. I also think the combination of that minimalism with the sparkly, glittery production elements throughout helps keep it ethereal without going completely dark.
Your sound sits between experimental pop and emotional accessibility. How conscious are you of pushing boundaries versus keeping songs relatable?
I love finding the balance between pushing the boundaries and trying new, experimental things while still making them accessible and relatable. I don’t make songs specifically so that they’re commercially viable, especially because I love nuanced lyrics and production that leans more alternative, electronic, and indie, but I love a catchy melody. I think I exist somewhere in between where some songs walk the line, some will lean more experimental, and others will lean more accessible to the mainstream ear. Like I mentioned earlier though, I don’t really get to choose. I just find whatever thread calls to me and follow it wherever it leads, so really the songs decide what they are, and I just execute the vision.
As a photographer and visual artist, how does visual storytelling influence the way you build your musical world?
As I’m making songs, I see them in the form of videos, pictures, colors, textures, symbols, etc in my mind. If something I’m working on is good enough, I’ll usually see something while I’m working on it, and that’s how I know it’s a strong idea. And often the visuals I see while making the music direct how I write and create the soundscape. They go hand in hand, the music and the visuals I see going back and forth in inspiring each other.
After releasing two EPs in 2025, you’re now preparing a 10-song mixtape. How does this next project expand on the themes or sound of “Look So Pretty”?
Just like Look So Pretty, the rest of the project feels like someone living while watching themselves live. Not only is it exploring the idea of being seen by others, but maybe even more so exploring what it means to perceive yourself as you grow and change and chase your dreams. Throughout the project, you never really know who the narrator is, whether they are the haunter or the haunted, the villain or victim. Maybe both. Look So Pretty is about one mask—beauty. The mixtape is about all the masks we wear. Ghost. Shapeshifter. Dreamer. The person in pain or seeking pleasure. The person feeling guilty. So it asks: if I take all the masks off, what—if anything—remains underneath?
What do you hope listeners take away from “Look So Pretty” once the song ends and the atmosphere fades?
I hope listeners take away whatever they need from it. Maybe it helps some look inward and question others and themselves, maybe it’s an escape from reality, or maybe it’s just something to listen to—that part isn’t really up to me. I just hope I get to keep making music forever.