V!ctoria wrote her first hit during COVID at 15, posted it on a whim, and watched it rack up over half a million streams. Now she can barely press play on it.

The 20-year-old New York artist blends R&B, pop, rock, and hip-hop into something Julian straight up couldn't categorize; and that's exactly the point. V!ctoria produces everything herself on Logic, works exclusively in the dark, and refuses to be boxed into a single genre. She opens up about the comparison trap of outgrowing your own viral moment, why she won't force herself to write, what she learned about collaboration from Rome's closed music scene, and how consistency beats talent every time.

IN THIS CONVERSATION, WE GET INTO:

• Why her 553K-stream debut single is the one song she can't play out loud anymore
• The comparison trap: measuring your current self against your 15-year-old self's numbers
• Being your own manager, distributor, and creative director at 20, and what it costs
• What Rome's private music scene taught her about collaboration and community
• Talent vs. work ethic, and why showing up matters more than being gifted

ABOUT V!CTORIA:

V!ctoria is a 20-year-old New York-based indie artist making genre-defiant music that blends R&B, pop, rock, and hip-hop. She writes, produces, and releases everything independently. Her 2021 debut single "let me go" reached 553K Spotify streams without a single playlist placement, and her latest single "wondering" dropped May 2026.

CONNECT WITH V!CTORIA:

• Instagram: instagram.com/imvxctoria
• TikTok: tiktok.com/@imvxctoria
• Spotify: open.spotify.com/artist/1TIGLYKA8kApefnVSPuhWS
• Listen to "wondering": open.spotify.com/album/40SukE7Q9VDsdRam3GFb7N

MORE RESOURCES:

Follow the OFFICIAL "loves music" playlist on Apple Music:https://music.apple.com/library/playlist/p.4Y0J406i03DQrX

"loves music" playlist on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/0qE3kq89oyg3tFNbmRfHEO?si=vopaKQnNS8OHn0r2fFTVBg

Check out the "loves music" podcast website: https://www.podpage.com/loves-music/

Julian on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/julianjones417/

Julian on Threads: https://www.threads.net/@julianjones417

Check out Julian's book: https://a.co/d/0hzWNkiD

This podcast is managed by Wildwave Podcasting: https://www.wildwavepodcasting.com

MUSIC MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

Songs:

• "let me go" — V!ctoria
• "wondering" — V!ctoria
• "HOW I DO" — V!ctoria
• "POCKETFUL" — V!ctoria
• "Swimming Pools (Drank)" — Kendrick Lamar

Artists & Bands:

• V!ctoria
• Kendrick Lamar