Meet Our Muse: Clear

THIS IS CLEAR. UNAPOLOGETICALLY THEMSELVES – CLEAR IS A NON-BINARY ALT R+B ARTIST WHO EXPLORES SEXUALITY AND SPIRITUALITY THROUGH ALL FORMS OF EXPRESSION.

Clear, first and foremost you’re an incredible artist – we’re huge fans. But, for those who are meeting you for the first time, can you tell us about yourself?

Hi hiiii! I am a gender+genre-fluid artist from Vancouver BC. I've been splitting my time between LA + Toronto for the past 3 years, cultivating my "Self" Love as patiently, humorously and honestly as I can. I just released a new song called So Much More and I'm releasing another one, Sweetheart on Sept. 27th! Songwriting is my favourite, tis perhaps the most cathartic activity in my life - other than maybe cumming really hard :)

We haven’t seen you in a while! How are you now?

I'm doing well! Really getting honest with myself about self-sabotaging habits I didn't even realize were left over from when I was a teenager. It feels good to be genuinely curious about who I Am - as a personality who's nature is ultimately outside of their own conscious control. This objective self-study is helping me judge myself less and see myself Clearer - go figure.

You’re a major advocate for self-love and power in vulnerability. It’s incredible how you incorporate it in your art and even on your social media – it’s a process that always changes but what does that practice look like for you currently?

Everything I have found says the more myself I am the better my career will do, the more genuine of a tribe I'll find, and the more well-matched lovers I'll kiss. So heck...let's just get to it, shall we??

You express so much of your personal journey in your music and that is such a powerful act of vulnerability. Does it ever feel too vulnerable?

Short answer, no. I love being vulnerable because it means I get to enjoy connection. Plus - sharing my vulnerability in public forces me to discover where I feel bad about myself, and this stimulates my healing transformation. Then it begins to hurt less and less.

What’s your creative process like?

My whole life is a part of the process of creation. I curate my thoughts, and this creates my focus. It's through this door of experience that "art" comes - moments, relationships, songs. I do my best to touch my tenderest spots when I bring through music. I feel and then I go with that.

We met you during an amazing moment in your life - you were moving out of your apartment in Toronto and had just come out as non-binary. As you were navigating these changes, how did you feel then? What was the thought process like for you?

I felt free and home in my body in a way I never had before. It was fucking awesome. In that very room, I got to look in the mirror and see a short-haired, flat-chested boy for the first time! The elation was massive...I wept so hard I was paralyzed. There were shades of fear in that weeping too. Would this mean I'd have to medically transition? Of course, the answer for me was and is no. My gender is valid even if I look like a woman to you. I'm still a boy, and a girl, and I always will be, no matter what :)

We spoke about clothing as a costume and a form of expression – and you mentioned that your old clothes might not be able to express who you are anymore. What does your current closet look like now? Any favourite fits?

My closet is basically over-sized graphic tees and black joggers. I just unpacked my suitcase for the first time in 10 months - on the go, everything has to match, so I developed a rather neutral wardrobe this year. I can't wait to settle back in LA so I can get back into statement pieces and platform kicks *drool* I wonder which ones I'll choose now that I'm a boi :) So exciting, I love playing with clothes and gender.

Looking back at your life what are your greatest accomplishments thus far?

I meditated this morning !!!

When do you feel most empowered?

When I'm cumming so loud my throat hurts, and everything I've ever feared is forgotten, and its just me, my Full Self, and the purest brightest Light.

Which physical attributes do you love the most?

How my face looks like a boy's when I don't wear any makeup! At least I like to think so :)

Clear is wearing our Boxer Briefs in Blac k. Photography by Mary Chen.

Special thanks to Clear for allowing us to photograph them in the midst of a move.

Clear Mortifee is a genre-fluid, non-binary recording artist hailing from Vancouver, Canada. They demonstrate their creative vision through spiritual centering and erotic sanctification, initiating an important evolution in the narrative surrounding trans + femme empowerment, sex, and art. With almost 4 million streams on Spotify alone, they invent music that is poignantly suited for our times.

Written by Mary Young