MZ: I know nothing about it. I never grew up with it.

TV: Do you think it's cool though that there's finally some Asian-American representation? Or at least we're a lot more visible.

MZ: Yeah, yeah. I remember feeling that way and then Karen O [from the Yeah Yeah Yeahs] like changed my life. I think that Karen O changed a lot of young, Asian kids' lives. I just remember seeing videos of her spitting water all over herself and like deep-throating a microphone and just being like, "I want to do that."

TV: How'd your parents feel about that? Were they like supportive?

MZ: Well, my mom unfortunately never got to see me have any kind of success as an artist, and my dad lives in Thailand now, and also hasn't really seen any big shows that we've played. But my dad's really proud of me.

[As for whether they were supportive,] not like at all, no, no, no, no. My mom was just like, "I'm just waiting for you to get over this." My mom wouldn't let me take guitar lessons until I was 16, and I had wanted to for like three years.

I think that she was really concerned, financially, that I would be in trouble. Also, I think also mentally, she was concerned that there's just so much rejection — it's a very difficult life — and she just wanted something a little bit more secure for me. I think it was out of love, but a lot of Asian parents typically ban creativity from their kids.

TV: Would you say being Korean-American has influenced your songwriting or the themes you try to tackle? Has it influenced the way you work?

Maybe having a tiger mom made me a really diligent worker. I think that that maybe affects [my music]. Yeah, I don't know. I think that right now there are a lot of young kids that are pushing marginalized voices to the front, and I think I feel kind of a part of that. It feels really like it's a special time to be a part of that. I think that that's been a part of it. I think that now that it gets so much attention, I find myself referencing it sometimes, because it feels good to be celebrated for who you are for the first time in your life.

There's one lyric on the record where I talk about the diving woman of Jeju-do. Then my shirts have Haenyeo women on them. So there's some fun, little Easter eggs that I place. It's not a huge part of my work. I think it's just more like referential at this point because it gets so much attention.

TV: Why do you think that's the kind of sound and vibe that you gravitate towards with this project?

MZ: I think that I've just always really enjoyed pop music, and that those are the things that I grew up with. I think I grew up with a lot of Motown compilations and like girl groups. Like Fleetwood Mac was a really big influence to me growing up. I feel like I'm just really into substantive, like pop music with substance. So I think that I aim to kind of make pop music that's interesting and has lyrical depth. Yeah, that's kind of my MO.

TV: That's awesome. So moving on, let's talk a little bit about the video for "Road Head" you recently made. I saw you tweet about how the song is about someone who told you they didn't think you were cut out for a music career and stuff. Can you tell me a little bit about that? It's kind of surprising that we're in 2017 and people still say dumb stuff like that. You know?