Mollie Elizabeth Enchants Her Audiences with New EP People Pleaser
From the °1824 Press Conference
By Bethany Mikrut
Born and raised in the woods of Washington State, Mollie Elizabeth is quickly proving herself as a breakout artist. She let her imagination run free as a child, which later influenced her art and storytelling. After the breakout success of her first EP Dirty Blonde and her hit single, "Run Rabbit," she quickly signed with Capitol Records and relocated to Los Angeles, while developing her voice and holding onto her creative processes.
Mollie established her music as "whimsical storytelling," while conveying and expressing deep and traumatic topics about her childhood and being a woman in society, in order to process her emotions in a more manageable way. She draws inspiration from many classic childhood fairy tales that communicate important topics and messages in understandable and beautiful ways, especially classics such as Alice in Wonderland and The Jungle Book. Even though she never participated in official musical theatre productions as a child, films and projects such as The Sound of Music and Singin' in the Rain encouraged her to start writing and pursuing music. She has been getting more into theatre through projects like Cabaret and Les Misérables. Because of this early musical influence, she has been investing in this double-sided lens her entire life and has finally settled on the whimsical princess aesthetic.
During the writing process, Mollie was also influenced by dark, unsettling forms of media by notable filmmakers like Ari Aster's Midsommar and horror video games such as Little Misfortune and Little Nightmares. Ultimately, showing that Mollie deeply resonates and connects to unconventional forms of storytelling.
Mollie emphasizes that a major theme of her art is showing how humans can be cruel and parasitic to animals and the earth they live on. Therefore, she wants listeners to protect and nurture the environment they live in. In addition, another recurring theme is breaking away and not conforming to societal expectations and constraints. Mollie mentions that when she moved to Los Angeles, she was exposed to more advertisements and billboards that encouraged her to write this project and influenced multiple songs, including "Gimme More!" and "Puppet Show."
People Pleaser contains 6 tracks, all with a unique story to tell. The title was chosen because, as a child, Mollie was always told she was a people pleaser, and it is ironic because the major takeaway from the project is to not conform to negative societal traits.
The EP opens with "Gimme More!," which is a track about societal standards of beauty, wealth, and attitude towards women and how negative affirmations are ingrained in young girls throughout their childhood. "Run Rabbit" is a deeply emotional track about childhood abuse, specifically from a father, and trying to escape while having to endure pain. She also emphasizes that "Run Rabbit" is also about moving to Los Angeles as a woman and being afraid to walk outside alone. "Puppet Show" discusses the never-ending pursuit of perfection in today's society. It is a beautiful song about not feeling in control of your own body and being manipulated to fit into societal expectations. The music video references The Twilight Zone episode titled "Eye of the Beholder," which involves undergoing medical procedures to end up in bandages, but "perfect to the bone," which picks on the plastic surgery culture on social media.
"Bang Bang" is about the false sense of security. Mollie states it is about the "padded walls I build for myself." Similar to "Puppet Show," "Bang Bang" manages the feeling of wanting to conform to expectations to feel safe, but rather feels a lack of autonomy and self-control. "Petty Crimes" is the "theme song for the misunderstood." It is a powerful song about how women who seek help are frequently misunderstood and minimized, causing them to seek negative and destructive behavior. For Mollie, it describes the medical system where women aren't treated seriously. The EP closes with "Kiss The Ring," a track about rejecting people-pleasing, overcoming trauma, and gaining power back. It is the perfect song to close out one of the most impactful projects of 2026.
People Pleaser was a project for Mollie to gain back control. Throughout the process, she learned that " [I'm] angry it happened." Because her older projects were more mellow, these releases were a way for Mollie to overcome adversity and gain some mental closure on her past. She wishes that fans take away many pieces of advice embedded in the themes and lyrics, including letting go of being a people pleaser, advocating for yourself, learning what you deserve, and learning that "life is meant to be experienced, not bought."
This autumn and spring, Mollie Elizabeth is touring North America and Europe to perform People Pleaser. She is looking forward to traveling to new places, especially Europe, to perform and tell her stories to new audiences. She wants fans to expect fun and a "kooky, weird, and spooky" concert. Even though she wishes fewer people related to her work, it is still a dream come true for Mollie to see fans relate, connect, and sing the lyrics back to her each night.
Ultimately, People Pleaser is one of the best projects of the year, as it discusses deep and important topics in a "whimsical" tone that everyone can understand and process. Mollie states that " [I] want people to feel empowered and more inquisitive… and question things that are dragging you down in society," in addition to taking away the whimsicalness by reconnecting with nature and the environment that surrounds you. Mollie is one of the greatest emerging storytellers of our generation and writes about topics everyone deserves to hear. People Pleaser is out now, and you should listen to it.