Music

MARVIN Exclusive: Sam Quealy Stopped Explaining Herself on JAWBREAKER

Sam Quealy doesn’t ease you into her world — she throws you straight onto the dancefloor, somewhere between euphoria and emotional whiplash. With JAWBREAKER arriving January 30, the artist’s latest era sharpens everything that made her debut feel magnetic: the instinct, the vulnerability, the refusal to explain herself. The early singles move like a thesis in motion — pulsing, tender, and slightly dangerous — hinting at a record that thrives on contrast. In this MARVIN exclusive, Quealy unpacks the sweetness inside the bite, the freedom in making “unsafe” music, and the version of herself that finally stopped asking for permission.

MARVIN: JAWBREAKER drops January 30, but the three singles already feel like a mission statement. When you zoom out now, what version of yourself does this album capture?

SAM:I think I grew a lot as an artist, songwriter, and composer on this album. If my first record Blonde Venus was the music you put on at 5am at the afters, JAWBREAKER is what’s playing while you’re getting ready to go out or once you’re already inside the club. I experimented more, especially with disco and 70s and 80s influences, and I felt more confident following my instincts. This album captures the version of me that stopped explaining myself. I wasn’t trying to be liked or understood, I was just being honest. The songs feel sharper because I felt sharper.

MARVIN: “Londontown,” “Love Lasso,” and “By My Side” each reveal a different emotional entry point. Why were these the first windows into JAWBREAKER, and what do they signal about what’s still to come?

SAM:I chose those three songs first because they show how emotionally broad JAWBREAKER is. “Londontown” is pure escapism, rave energy and losing yourself in the night. “Love Lasso” is the heartbreak track, raw and emotional, about being pulled back into something you know isn’t right. “By My Side” shows the other side of the record. It’s about love, finding your soulmate, loyalty, joy, and choosing positivity. Together, they signal that JAWBREAKER moves between chaos and tenderness, darkness and light, and the rest of the album keeps pushing those contrasts.

MARVIN: There’s a push and pull between sweetness and bite across the singles, a tension that feels central to JAWBREAKER. Was that contrast something you set out to explore from the start?

SAM: That contrast is exactly where the title JAWBREAKER comes from. It sounds violent, dark, and dangerous, but it is still sweet inside. That felt like the perfect way to describe the album. I always intended to explore that push and pull. I like when things feel sharp but still emotional, tough but vulnerable. That tension runs through the whole record and really defines its sound and energy.

MARVIN: Sonically, the singles suggest an album that isn’t interested in playing it safe. What boundaries were you most eager to test while building the world of JAWBREAKER?

SAM: I honestly cannot help myself from making music that feels unsafe. I do not have formal training, so I just follow what sounds good and what feels right. The boundaries I wanted to push were really simple: to be unapologetically myself. I make what I want, say what I feel, and trust that the music speaks for itself. Some people might not get it at all, but the ones who get it really get it.

MARVIN: Even without the full record out yet, JAWBREAKER already feels cohesive. How early did the album’s emotional arc take shape, and did the singles help define it or simply introduce it?

SAM: I actually started writing JAWBREAKER during the Blonde Venus tour, so I was in this mix of adrenaline and pure joy from being on the road but also in a really emotional state. I always knew I wanted to take my time with this record, not just throw songs out for the sake of it, and be more selective with the tracks. That meant each song had space to breathe and a vibe that really mattered. The singles were the first windows into that world. They hint at the emotional arc of the album, but the full record takes those ideas even further and shows the full range of moods and energy.

MARVIN: Your voice carries a lot of physical presence on these tracks, close, breathy, sometimes restrained. How intentional was that vocal approach in shaping the mood of JAWBREAKER as a whole?

SAM: Yes, I used a lot less auto-tune this time, but I still chose to use it in certain places as a stylistic choice. I wanted to explore lower, more raw vocals as well as really sincere and innocent moments, like in “Love Fountain.” I even speak French on the record. Some of the vocals were recorded when I was sick, but we kept them because the strained quality added something interesting. Overall, I wanted the vocals to carry a physical presence and shape the mood of the album, making it feel close, breathy, and emotionally immediate.

MARVIN: With JAWBREAKER still unreleased, how does it feel watching listeners form opinions based on only a fragment of the album? Do the singles tell the truth or are they a controlled misdirection?

SAM: I don’t think about it too much. The singles are just pieces of the album, but they are honest in their own way. They give a taste of the world I built, but the full record has so many sides, fun, chaotic, soft, messy. I love that people start forming opinions from just a fragment because it means the songs are already working, but the album has a lot of surprises the singles cannot fully show.

MARVIN: When JAWBREAKER finally lands in full, what do you hope listeners realize that they couldn’t from “Londontown,” “Love Lasso,” and “By My Side” alone?

SAM: I hope they just enjoy the wild journey of JAWBREAKER. For me, it takes you on an emotional ride through love, heartbreak, strength, and self-discovery. It mixes nostalgia with moments of wild freedom, vulnerability, and healing. Basically, it’s messy, emotional, and unapologetically me. I also want to leave space for my listeners to make their own interpretations.

If Blonde Venus was the after-hours confession, JAWBREAKER is the moment before the lights come up — mascara smudged, heart racing, truth fully intact. Across this conversation, Quealy reveals an artist leaning into instinct over interpretation, tension over polish, and honesty over approval. The album doesn’t ask to be decoded so much as felt: sharp, sweet, chaotic, and alive. When JAWBREAKER lands, it won’t just complete the picture the singles started — it will widen it, leaving listeners to decide which parts hit hardest and why.