Conan Gray’s music is akin to a well-loved coming-of-age movie packaged as a pop song. It’s familiar and contemporary, yet strikes a nostalgic chord targeted at Gen Z. Considered “bedroom pop,” Gray’s self-recorded EP Sunset Season came together in his Georgetown, Texas home. “We live in this really interesting generation now where people can make fantastic music out of their bedroom; it’s really pushing artists to be genuine in what they make and to be extremely creative,” explains Gray. Worth noting, this was before he even graduated high school. The now-20-year-old credits the power of the Internet and social media for allowing his voice to be heard. “I don’t think that I would have any of the success that I have now if it wasn’t for the Internet. I was also a really quiet kid. Nobody at school knew that I sang or wrote music,” says Gray. He continues to describe the writing process as a cathartic release, one that allows him to understand his true feelings. Citing Adele, who he discovered at age 12, as a key influence, he says, “I realized that music and especially pop music could really be beautiful and make you feel. It was also the first time that I realized you could write your own songs.”