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Photo by Santiago Warren

Ella Boh’s artist persona may be dark and intense, but it doesn’t take long after meeting to realize that it’s just that; a caricature of herself. As we sit down to chat about her second EP BLURRY, it’s clear that creating is her lifeline. At the time of our conversation, she was about to embark on a tour supporting Artemas and hadn’t even locked down a release date for this project. In a few short months, her artistic vision has only become sharper and more realized, marking the perfect moment for these 5 tracks to coexist, each with their own stories and character. Dive into our chat from January with the internet’s favorite starlet, where we chat all things BLURRY:  

OnesToWatch: How was your 2025 and how are you feeling going into 2026?

Ella Boh: 2025 was randomly so many firsts. Everything was so hectic. I put out my first song and now I have an EP, which is crazy. I went to Germany. I opened for Ari Abdul…so many things that I hadn’t done before. It is very much a whirlwind. I have no expectations ever, so I'm just excited for whatever happens. Anything is exciting because I literally don't expect anything. 

You're going on tour with Artemas, how are you feeling about going back on the road and crafting the set list?

I'm really excited. These are the biggest rooms that I've ever played in. Obviously, opening is nerve wracking, but putting it together was so fun because I finally get to perform all the songs that I've been waiting to perform for almost a year. This EP was made over the last half of last year, so I’ve been sitting on it. I just wanted to perform it already. I like performing the other songs, I love them but…I guess it's classic artist behavior. I just want the new stuff out.

Is there a new song you think the fans are going to love especially?

I don't even know because I swear to God, every time I even pick one that I think that people are going to like the most, it's always the most random one that they end up liking. I can't even pick my favorite one. I have different favorites every week. I think I'm really going to be able to tell once I'm performing it and feel the energy. There's something that happens when you walk on stage. Last tour, that was “SERiAL KiLLER". Being able to imagine them live is adding so much new meaning to the songs.

Which Artemas songs are you most excited to hear? 

All of his music is so good. I think I'm the most excited about “i guess u never really cared about me.” I just fucking love that song. 

Since you released your first EP last year, what did you learn that you took with you making this new project?

I mean, I didn't even have a TikTok before last year. 

Did you have a personal TikTok? 

Yeah, but I would post videos of my cats and random songwriter things. I was a songwriter / producer for other people then. The biggest thing that's changed is I've gotten to sit in my artistry and allow my brain to go there. Whereas before, I feel like I couldn't really fully get there because I was so all over the place, writing for this person, producing for another person. The biggest change is I've been focusing on my artistry and allowing myself to be an artist. It's a mindset shift. I did my whole last EP by myself, minus the songs that have features, obviously. I've brought in people that I trust and that get it and care as much as I do. The biggest thing that's changed is that I'm letting myself be. My last EP, I was just writing from a place of feeling an emotion and going to write a song about it really quick. This time I get to push further.

How did you choose “SERiAL KiLLER" as the first single? 

It kind of just happened that way. I think the coolest thing has been all of the fan theories. I'm kind of insane and I'm always thinking about the Easter eggs and what things mean. I want people to be able to listen as a passive listener and also as a mega fan who can pick up hints that I’m dropping. That's been the coolest thing, seeing them resonate and be so obsessed with the world. I like putting out music as quickly as humanly possible. So, it just became the first single because it was the first song that I made for this project. It’s a free-flowing thing, because a lot of people have to sit on the song for a year. I just can't do that. I literally can't because then I'll make 10 more songs that I need to have out immediately. 

I talk to a lot of artists who are promoting their project but are already mentally onto the next. So it's fun that you can keep it in the moment as much as you can.

Exactly. The most fun part is building the world with the fans. It’s the most important thing to me. I'm putting out this music in real time and they are giving me their feedback and giving me their thoughts and theories in real time. It's kind of like we're building it together, which is really fun. As a fan, I always gravitate towards artists that have a real community. 

Let’s do a track by track, starting with “iNSOMNiAC”.

It’s exactly what it sounds like. I cannot ever sleep. Every song on this EP is representative of a different part of my psyche. It's five different sides of being a human. “iNSOMNiAC” is about how I don't feel like a real person most of the time. Like, is this even fucking real? I don’t know.

“BLODY MARY”: 

I grew up in a very restrictive religion until I was around seven. When my parents left, most of my family on both sides shunned us. They would literally not speak to us. It was very culty. “BLOODY MARY” is me exploring that part of myself, declaring that I am who I am. Looking in the mirror, I see her. I can't run away from myself. People may be disapproving of who I am, but it's not going anywhere. It’s very much, “you disown me, so I'm disowning you now.”

“LLORONiTA”:

I've had this concept for a very long time. I think since I started writing songs. These characters have been cooking my whole life. “LLORONiTA” means little cry baby. I'm super emo and emotional. This song is the side of myself with abandonment issues. Please don't leave me or I'll literally cry until my eyes fall off of my head. 

“STARLET”: 

This character is heavily influenced by a younger me. “STARLET” is the part of my brain where I want people to give a fuck about who I am. It's the obsession with being seen and heard. Like I said, my family and I were shunned. So, when I was very little, I was like, “I need to be famous so I can choose who to ignore.” I want the power in this dynamic. It’s about wanting someone to want you so that you can choose whether you give them that attention or not. 

I just love all of the different characters that you're playing with. Do you lean into those characters when you perform?

That is the plan. I want people to see themselves in each character and decide what they identify with. Separating the different parts of my brain in this way and making them into characters, it also adds a little bit of space. So, I don't have to feel this all the time. 

This project is so cinematic, I was wondering if there are any movies / shows you love that might’ve influenced it in some way?

The shows You and Dexter were very influential for “SERiAL KiLLER”. Horror movies in general, like Paranormal Activity and The Conjuring very much inspired a lot of the concepts for “iNSOMNiAC”. I watched a lot of Tim Burton growing up, that's in there. “LLORONiTA” is very Alice In Wonderland, when she cries and then the room fills up. I would be oversimplifying myself if I pointed to one thing. It's a combination of everything and just life itself. 

You produce your own music, which is amazing. Tell us about the process and how producing your own music differs from when you were making songs for other artists. 

The reason why I did my first EP solely by myself was to explore whatever I felt like exploring. When you're producing for other people, you have to be so locked in with that artist that you understand and have the same taste, especially with production. That's so important. But for me, producing my own stuff, I think the most fun part is the experimenting. I don't have to worry about someone not liking it. I don't have to wait for validation from anyone else. I can just do whatever I want. That’s the biggest difference. Getting to sit in that, I think I'm still getting used to it. 

How did you get into writing for other artists and how did you transition into your own artist project?

I started the music industry as an artist, but I was 15 years old. I would put covers on YouTube and ended up in sessions. I didn't know what I wanted to say at that point in my life. I mean, who does? Thank God I didn't. It would have been something really cringy and embarrassing. All throughout high school, I was just writing. I was in L.A. most of the time and then when the pandemic hit, I didn't do any sessions for a year. It halted all my plans. When I met my publisher, they recognized I could write great pitch songs. I just couldn't stop writing, so I just ended up writing for other people. Eventually, the songs started to sound like my songs.

It was obviously meant to be. Before we go, who are your OnesToWatch?

Right now, The Marías and Mareux.

Listen to BLURRY below: