In an exclusive interview with Nylon Magazine, Chlöe Bailey arrives at a Highland Park restaurant, embodying the epitome of red-carpet glamour. Her locs are pulled into a sleek ponytail, her makeup exudes smoky vixen vibes, and her eyelashes are practically sculptural. Yet, her outfit suggests a different story: navy loungewear paired with charmingly adorned Crocs, complete with teddy bear, wave, rainbow, banana, and oat milk carton charms.
“I tell people all the time, I have two modes,” Chlöe shares, having just come from a photoshoot for this story. On stage, she is a powerhouse, known for her heart-pounding dance routines, Olympic-level hair-ography, and operatic vocals, often performing alongside her younger sister Halle as part of the Grammy-nominated duo Chloe x Halle. Off stage, she embraces what she calls “drab mode.” “Eight times out of 10, I’m in no makeup and sweats. Right when I go home, I’m wiping my makeup off, and this is me the majority of the time,” she says. “I’m working on finding the balance.”
Finding this balance comes naturally to Chlöe in Saint Lucia, where she recorded much of her upcoming second album, “Trouble in Paradise”. The Caribbean island, where she frequently vacations, allows work and pleasure to blend seamlessly. The easygoing sounds of Saint Lucia—calypso, gospel, Afrobeats, Carnival band music—infuse her new project, set for release later this summer. If her first solo album, “In Pieces” (2023), was about “appreciating the sadness of heartache,” “Trouble in Paradise” represents “a coming-of-age celebration of being a woman and having fun, not taking life too seriously.”
Chlöe’s relaxed, positive attitude extends beyond her music. Last month, during a TikTok livestream, a fan asked her for advice on coping when it feels like “life is beating your ass.” Chlöe’s response—”Arch it! Arch it up even higher. Get some pleasure out of it”—quickly went viral. Chlöe admits she didn’t expect such a reaction. “I don’t know if it’s the songwriter in me, I just always am cracking jokes and thought of it on a whim,” she says. Now, as we leave the restaurant, she beams at a notification on her phone: her merch bearing the cheeky slogan is now live.
Chlöe is used to shaking off criticism about everything from her clothes to her music. “I think people like to find stuff to nitpick about me because I don’t give anybody anything to nitpick about,” she says. “I’m a pretty chill person. I just mind my business and make my art. So people got to pick on something.”
The feedback used to weigh on her more, but as she approaches her 26th birthday, she’s finding a new resilience. “I’m a very soft, kind person, and a lot of times, it gets mistaken for weakness,” she explains. “A lot of people think because I am kind, that they can walk all over me and I don’t know what I’m talking about. But I just smile and wave and keep my thoughts to myself and let people underestimate me.”
Chlöe’s journey to viral fame began with YouTube covers alongside Halle, eventually catching the eye of Beyoncé, who signed them to her Parkwood Entertainment company in 2015. Since then, the sisters have released two acclaimed albums while pursuing individual projects. Halle starred in last year’s live-action, “The Little Mermaid,” while Chlöe ventured into solo music with hits like “Have Mercy.”
Despite her success, Chlöe recently hit a creative rut, feeling drained by the industry’s focus on numbers and analytics. Remembering Beyoncé’s advice—”You have to let the world catch up because you’re always ahead of the curve”—helped reignite her passion. “What I kind of love about my art is that it sneaks up on you,” she says. “When “In Pieces” came out, not many people really got it. But now, a year later, people are like, ‘Oh, it’s genius! It’s beautiful! It’s amazing!’”
As Chlöe navigates her solo career, she embraces her evolving image. Critics initially balked at her raunchier lyrics and form-fitting outfits, but Chlöe remains unapologetic. “I was always wearing tight stuff and showing my butt. The juxtaposition of my sister and I just diluted it a bit,” she explains. “I am quirky, but I am sexy at the same time. You can be both!”
Her time in Saint Lucia has further liberated her, celebrating her body without reservations. “Being in the Caribbean, everyone has their ass out, no bra,” she says. “It’s so liberating.” She enjoys sharing these moments with her followers, challenging the taboo around self-celebration.
Chlöe also addresses the racial undertones in music categorization. “Any music I do will easily and quickly be categorized as R&B because I’m a Black woman,” she notes. “If someone who didn’t have my skin tone made the same music, it would be in the pop categories.”
Inspired by trailblazers like Whitney Houston, Chlöe is determined to transcend genre boundaries. “Early on in her career, when she was doing the big pop records, she got a lot of flak for that: being told she wasn’t Black enough,” she says. “To see how she persevered and has become one of the most iconic, legendary artists shows that music has no race, it has no genre.”
Chlöe is also part of a supportive community of genre-defying artists, like Tinashe and Bree Runway. “Healthy competition is amazing,” she says. “It pushes you. It allows you to become better.”
When not working, Chlöe finds solace in building Legos, a hobby she’s pursued since fifth grade, and boxing, where she visualizes her frustrations. “When I’m with my trainer, there have been several faces I have pictured on the other side of those gloves,” she laughs.
Romantically, Chlöe is content, drawing inspiration for “Trouble in Paradise” from multiple experiences. The album includes collaborations with Anderson .Paak and Jeremih, but the highlight is a duet with Halle called “Want Me,” their first new track together in three years. “It just felt like old times,” she says of their studio session.
As she wraps up her album, Chlöe looks forward to more creative projects. “When you have a creative bug, you don’t want to let it go,” she says. The former track star is ready to sprint ahead, letting the world catch up to her unique rhythm.
Click here to read the full cover story on Nylon Magazine.
TEAM
Photographs by Danielle Levitt
Styling by Oliver Vaughn
Set Designer: Cooper Vasquez
Hair: Fesa Nu
Makeup: Kevin Luong
Manicure: Yoko Sakakura
Talent Bookings: Special Projects
Video: Alex Van Brande, Devin O’Neill
Photo Director: Alex Pollack
Editor in Chief: Lauren McCarthy
SVP Fashion: Tiffany Reid
SVP Creative: Karen Hibbert
English