"I find it the equivalent of having two glasses of wine, in terms of inner quiet-tude,” K.Flay says of painting her nails …

When Kristine Flaherty (better known as K.Flay) jumped into producing music, she did so to prove a point that radio hits could be duplicated with ease. Enjoying herself through the process, the part-time emcee / part-time pop vocalist continued to create and hone her artistic chops — and now boasts a stellar following through her social media outlets. She’ll be in Denver performing at Larimer Lounge on Saturday, July 11 and back in the state again on Tuesday, July 28 for a performance at the Aggie Theatre in Ft. Collins with AWOLNATION. 

How are you enjoying the upswing in all of this madness that is your life now?

Everything’s really good, I think! It’s been cool to watch the record (“Life As A Dog”) breathe and find itself a new fanbase. Coming from a label infrastructure previously, there’s so much focus on singles and having these overarching game plans, and it doesn’t always do well for a record to just kind of exist that way. This one is more natural. But we’ve been touring non-stop in support of it. This summer’s run should be a great mix.

You mention the infrastructure of releasing music: How would you like to do it with your career now?

Having been on a major label, I can definitely say that’s a situation that’s a really positive one (for artists), and exactly what they need. For me, my music is a little bit in between a lot of genres, and it’s harder to fit into the machinery of the label. Another reason too, is that for me, my autonomy and I have a very DIY and intimate approach. It’s how I’ve always liked to do things, even prior to the label. In regard to how to release, there’s been a mix of formats.

Releasing singles is obviously a bit more for electronic music or dance music, but releasing content in smaller chunks creates another type of narrative. Albums are one narrative. For me right now, I’m on this album/EP side of life.

There definitely has to be forethoughts now about how to release and on what platform …

I think it’s more the vision for the release than the actual release itself, because people are obviously consuming music in such varied and bizarre ways. It’s interesting, but there’s something to be said for the one-off single and the attention drawn to this one piece of content. It’s very focused and easy to connect to in that way.

Is music now something you do full time? Have you taken that dramatic jump of living the life of a struggling artist?

(laughs) Well, I’m definitely living the life of a struggling artist. If you do art, any form of art, that’s not like, hyper-hyper-commercial, you’re at least internally struggling. But no, I do music full time, which is awesome. Not a lavish life, but a good life!

FASCINATING FACT: K.Flay loves painting her nails — “It’s very relaxing, I’d be curious to know if anybody reading this finds it to be as relaxing as I do. I find it the equivalent of having two glasses of wine, in terms of inner quiet-tude.”

Do you have people close to you nay-saying it because of how hard the industry can be?

I feel very lucky to say it, but no. Not really. My family has been super supportive, and my friends as well. I think everybody knows if I needed to quit I would — I think that’s the assumption that everyone is assuming I can handle myself properly, which perhaps may be an incorrect assumption …

So what’s the ultimate vision behind what you want to do with music?

For me, where I started, it was about being honest about myself and putting my experiences in my music. I started to see that not only was I enjoying the process, but so were other people? It feels very natural. Obviously there’s a lighthearted side to my personality. There’s a stage right now for me in this alt-indie-pop-whatever world that it is that feels very good and comfortable.

Have you had those experiences from fans where they hit you hard with how you’ve changed their lives?

It’s — I wouldn’t say common — but I encounter a fair amount at shows … or even just Facebook messages, or whatever. And I think, for me, I know the effects of different artists and musicians in my life. I feel very honored anyone would listen in the first place, and second I can provide any sort of emotional support. It’s amazing hearing other people’s stories from all over the world.