There are artists you discover and artists that find you. Standing next to Dolly Ave on the Shoreline at Warped Tour Long Beach with my DJI Osmo hastily propped on a paint-chipped blue picnic table, I had the distinct feeling I was talking to someone the rest of the world would be obsessed with soon.
If you caught my Warped Tour Long Beach recap, you already know I mentioned my chat with Dolly Ave as one of the highlights of the entire weekend. Now that the recap is out and the video is live, it's time to really give this conversation the spotlight it deserves.
So, Who Is Dolly Ave?
If you don't know the name yet, you will soon.
Dolly Ave is a rising Vietnamese-American alt rock musician whose fearless blend of alt rock and melodic emo-pop has drawn widespread attention from publications like Rolling Stone and Harper's Bazaar, with radio play reaching stations throughout the US. Sitting on my hotel bed the night before our interview was set, I read all I could about her. She was named as a featured talent in the Converse All Star Class, she's been a LiveNation spotlighted artist, her photoshoot with Harper's Bazaar was aesthetically stunning – but it was the story she told of her upbringing that really resonated with me as a fellow queer woman of color.
What gets me most about Dolly's story is the road that brought her here. She didn't come up through the traditional music industry pipeline. She started as an event photographer, with a career she built entirely through her own instincts and visual eye. It wasn't until COVID took her job, and in that same devastating year, her mother too. She turned to music shortly afterward as a way to fight through the grief. Her sound draws from the same well a lot of us grew up on: Paramore, Cage the Elephant, The Strokes. But the way she assembles it all together is truly her own. Think 2000s early alt energy meets queer filter lens with a lot more honesty than most artists are willing to put on record.
She's currently on tour and gearing up for the September 2026 release of her upcoming album, "Bad Brain". Kevin Lyman personally invited her to Warped Tour after a brief bumping into – which, if you know anything about Kevin, tells you everything you need to know about the kind of talent she carries with her.
So, twas the night before Warped Tour, and all through the Hilton... there were a lot of creatures stirring, everyone was checking in, and I slipped my headphones on, pressed play on "Bad Brain", and immersed myself in her sound. I had spent 3 hours on the plane over from Texas listening to this album on and off. The first 3 plays were because I wanted to really understand her lyrics before meeting her. The next 3 were because I couldn't imagine navigating away from the page.
Tell us about "Bad Brain."
Dolly Ave: "I just wanted to take my time. Honestly, I spent time experiencing life, being outside of the studio, and then reflecting on adulthood and making this album that felt nostalgic to me with heavy guitars and melancholy lyrics."
Heavy guitars and nostalgia truly do not do this album justice: the best way I can describe it is this: you know when you used to go to Hot Topic, and you'd be pawing through that bin at the front where the workers all burned CDs of their favorite songs and sold them for like $5.00? You'd pick a duct-taped album out, and you'd grab one of those tattoo choker necklaces to edge up your wardrobe, then head back to your car and pop the freshly bought CD in. Once the first song finished, you didn't even realize you hadn't actually left the parking lot because the song was that good, so you decided to just sit there and experience nothing else but that album, knowing damn well that's gonna be your new favorite artist and you'd need to tell all your friends on MSN messenger later to burn a copy of your CD?
Yeah.
That's "Bad Brain". I need you to promise me you're going to listen to it when it comes out, then share it with your friends, okay?
You're a self-described recovering people pleaser. Was there a moment during the making of this album where you finally said no – to a producer, a sound, a creative direction?
Dolly Ave: "Absolutely. I'm really good at saying no now, especially with creative direction. I had my start in photography and video and trusting my instincts. So when I feel something's off a little creatively, I just say, 'Hey you know, I'm the artist and this is my vision and I have a say in it.'"
She came up through photography and video first, which means she had a keen and strong creative instinct before diving into the music industry. That foundation gave her a framework for knowing when something felt wrong. More importantly, over time she grew the confidence to say so out loud. A lot of artists spend years trying to get to that place. Dolly got there by trusting her gut and following her heart.
"Bad Brain" explores themes of sexuality pretty openly. Was there a line that felt almost too vulnerable to keep in, but you kept it anyway?
Dolly Ave: "The song 'Oh Ruby' – the line literally says 'I'm hoping it's just a phase' and it's very reflective on an experience of loving a woman. And I came from a very stigmatized upbringing. I think it's good to share that vulnerability because there are so many people who have those experiences about just meeting somebody for the first time and realizing, oh wow I really connect with this person regardless of gender or race or sexuality."
That line is the kind of lyric that really can impact you in such a quiet way, and it doesn't truly leave you. Because you feel seen in those kinds of words. It doesn't over-explain itself; it just sits there and reads you the way you were afraid your peers would when you were younger. Choosing to keep it in despite the doubt is an act of courage that I think is going to really mean so much to a lot of people when this album drops.
On being a queer femme rocker in alt spaces – and finding people your own way.
This is the part of the conversation that I keep reflecting on, even days later, sitting at my trinket-filled desk. I asked Dolly about what it's like to navigate identity as a queer person of color in the alt rock scene. Notoriously, it's a space that talks a big game about individuality, but it doesn't always back it up in practice. Her answer was one of the most grounded things I'd heard all weekend.
She talked about growing up Asian-American in small-town Missouri – feeling like she wasn't being Asian enough, not being white enough, spending years trying to fit into spaces that weren't built for her.
"Now I'm at a place where that is my strength. And also, my community backs me. I think sometimes we're trying to look to fit in where we're not welcomed, but there's always space for you." - Dolly Ave.
There's always space for you. Not "you'll find your place eventually." There's already space. You might just be looking in the wrong rooms.
If a younger femme artist walked up to you right now, mid people-pleasing phase, what's the first thing you'd tell them?
Dolly Ave: "What makes you authentic and stand out musically is your story. Trying to fit into other people's stories is not going to help. What you bring is unique already. So I would say try out what makes you feel comfortable in your own skin – and that's unique and authentic to you."
You've talked about wanting to take up space and stop shrinking yourself. Has there been a moment on this tour where you've gotten to test that in real time?
Dolly Ave: "Just in my freedom of expression in clothing – wearing whatever I want. The first show I wore basically lingerie on stage. I have short hair, y'know, and the next night on tour I was wearing a tutu ballerina outfit. I can be both masculine and feminine and that is my freedom of expression right now."
Final Thoughts, Y'all
"Bad Brain" drops in September 2026 and I genuinely cannot wait for the rest of the world to catch up to what I already know. Dolly Ave has upcoming tour dates in Cambridge, Philadelphia, DC, and New York. If she's coming through your city, GO. You'll thank yourself later.
That Hot Topic buried burned gem feeling? She's it. Tell your friends. Tell your grocer. Tell your neighbor while you're grabbing your mail, man.
You can watch the full interview on our YouTube channel, and keep an eye on our page here at Music Scene Media for more emerging artists, festival coverage, and live music reviews!
Interview conducted & edited by Rorrie Salazar for Music Scene Media. Dolly Ave, thank you for your time with me, and for inspiring us all to stay authentic and true to ourselves.
