INTERVIEW: Burr Oak
By Reegan Saunders
PC: Maddie Rogers
A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to talk to Savanna Dickhut, the frontwoman of Burr Oak. She is a bright, shining musician who helps to build the community around her. While we talked, she sat on her porch, enjoying an apple while wearing a Slow Pulp T-shirt. You can check out her latest single, “Trying,” on streaming platforms now, and look out for her next single, “Flower Garden,” on November 17!
So, tell me what has this year been like for you?
It’s been kind of a roller coaster ride, to be honest. Lots of ups and downs, lots of kind of learning how to adjust quickly and not get overwhelmed with things because, right when you get settled in, it seems like things change again. I've never really been that great at transitioning, so it's been a lot of me kind of learning how to grow into an adult. I’m 26 now, so it's been getting my own health insurance, and then the pandemic hit, and going through some personal stuff, and kind of just learning how to kind of just cope with that. And, in the end, I think it's definitely made me a stronger person.
How has your music writing process changed?
When the pandemic hit, I wasn't really feeling very inspired at first, but then I kind of got a wave of coming out of writer's block and feeling really inspired. I'm not a big audio engineering person. Typically, I work with people; I don't really record my own music, I write it. But I took it upon myself to, when we were all in quarantine.
I went down to my basement, reorganized my whole basement, and I went down there and I made a little studio for myself and I recorded a demo of a song that I wrote called “The Crowd,” which was about coming out of a seasonal depression and telling myself that it's okay to not be ahead of the crowd — essentially, the crowd being everyone else in my mind that I think, “Oh, they're so successful.” All these musicians that are younger than me are already touring and doing all this stuff [when] I don't even have an album out yet. But it's like, it's okay, because everybody goes at their own pace. And you know? That's part of the reason why I am calling my debut album Late Bloomer, because I really do feel like I'm a late bloomer, and there's nothing wrong with that.
Your writing is quite honest, which is why I'm really able to connect with it – because you tell your story, and you're not afraid to say anything.
And that actually took me a long time to be comfortable with. I've been writing for almost ten years now — well, over ten years — and I think the past two years, when I first started Burr Oak, it was scary because I was like, “Well, here we go. This is me putting everything out there.” And that's kind of why I say this is my diary you're reading because truly it's so personal and that’s not easy to just put out there and be like, “Listen to me while I rip my heart out.” But it's good; it's healthy. I wouldn't have it any other way because I think it's relatable stuff, and I enjoy telling my story.
PC: Carley Solether
Do you have any advice you would give to other artists who are trying to be more honest in their writing?
I would say, don't be afraid to let it all hang out. Because you don't really have anything to lose; you have everything to gain. And, at the end of the day, if one person hears it — like, maybe you're writing about your ex and they get pissed — you're helping way more people. You know, maybe don't put their name in it, but other than that, you have every right to tell your story and you have every right to be honest, and I guess just as personal as you want. So, yeah, I think everyone should talk about deep shit. I really do.
So, who would you say are your biggest inspirations, not only in the music industry, but in life in general?
In the music industry, I would say it changes so much over the years. When I was 16, I was a huge Taylor Swift fan. Like, I would die- I would die for Taylor. But, you know, now that I'm 26, that's, that's crazy; it's 10 years later — wow, where does the time go? — But, you know, now I'm inspired by less mainstream artists and more indie artists — a lot of women, a lot of female-fronted bands. Julia Jacklin comes to mind, and Hand Habits. Some local artists too — I miss going to live shows in Chicago, especially. When the pandemic wasn't happening I would go to, like, two or three shows a week and I would be inspired by people in the scene, playing music. And after shows, [I would feel] so inspired by my friends, and being surrounded by the community.
I've been inspired by a lot of Black women and a lot of POC, too, [while] just going to protests and taking a step back and listening. Like, Lizzo is my girl. It's funny because my girlfriend is a huge Lizzo fan and I never really listened to her before, but she's amazing. She's absolutely incredible. And I listened to her whole album about being a strong, independent woman and being confident in your own skin and your body…and she's so beautiful.
I'm a big Angelina Jolie fan, too. She's still, like, in the creative industry …. just women that are strong, doing their thing. I recently watched one of my favorite movies, Girl Interrupted. How vulnerable she is in her acting, and especially in her earlier films, playing a sociopath, becoming these characters that I'm sure you have to dig deep down inside to portray on the camera.
On another note, why the name Burr Oak?
When I was coming up with the name, I wanted to come up with a moniker that was my name, but not Savanna. Because my last name is Dickhut, so, when I was a kid, I would be so embarrassed and kids are cruel and laugh at dick jokes. So, because that's my last name, I didn't really want to go for the whole stage name, I wanted to go with my actual name.
So, I was thinking of how I could have it be my name, but have it be a different name. And so, I was doing some research and I stumbled upon different trees on savanna grasslands in the Midwest and stumbled upon a Burr Oak. They kind of dominate the Midwest; they're very popular here. My parents named me after savannas in the Midwest because they're both from Wisconsin, and then I was like, you know, that that makes sense. Like, Burr Oaks- they're on me, they're me. It just made sense.
My dad — once he found out that I was starting this new project and I was naming it Burr Oak — he was like, “Oh, did you name it after the tree, the Burr Oak tree that we planted in front of our house when you were born?” Like, it was crazy, because I didn't know this. The stars aligned, seriously. So, anyway, that's the story. And I love it, because it's very organic, and I feel like I'm a tree. A tree that sings.
What would you like your audience to know about your new single, “Trying?”
So, I just finished writing this creative essay for Talk House. I was really excited about it because I love writing essays and I haven't really written anything like that since college. It was only 500 words- I mean, I wrote like, 700; I just couldn't stop. So, I didn't really have a prompt. At first, I'm like, “What the hell am I supposed to do?.”
In the essay, I started talking about Amy Winehouse because she's also a huge, huge inspiration for me. And then I was just thinking about her and how similar we actually are — I mean, she went through some terrible, terrible things. I can relate to her, but not on that level. But, just listening to her record, I'm reminded of how amazing her voice is, and how such an incredible singer and songwriter she was, but how sad her whole career and life were. Most of her adult life, she was struggling with her mental health, and she was drinking constantly, and she had periods of sobriety, but for the most part, she was struggling and her music says that. And, so, I was relating my music to her’s in an abstract sense.
You don't have to be this troubled mess, a struggling artist whose life is completely out of control. You can be a healthy person and still write about these things and still go through them. That’s why I wanted to talk about mental health in the music industry and writing during these uncertain times, especially. Because it's so important to talk about it, and up until even five or ten years ago, people have just not really been talking about it and it's been taboo. I really think that it needs to be talked about more and more and more, because if we can normalize it….you hear you hear what I'm saying? It's very common in the music industry and with musicians.
So, the song is about my own mental health and kind of trying to figure out what’s next. Some days, I can't get out of bed, but I'll keep trying until I drop dead. So, in a nutshell, I'm saying, shit’s been hard, but I'm not gonna give up. Because I want to keep on going, I want to keep on living, and I know that I can do this. And, so, that's the chorus. And then, in the verses, I'm kind of talking about this past relationship that I had with my ex and how I miss her. But it was a dysfunctional unhealthy relationship so, as much as I want to kind of reach out to her, I know I shouldn't.
And then, [it also touches] on substance abuse, and how I went through this hard time where I was drinking a lot. I wasn't trying; I was doing the opposite where I was just suppressing everything. I didn't want to get help. I didn't want to go to therapy. I just wanted to keep making things worse. And then I finally did, and I'm thankful that I did because I'm doing so well now and I think that if you're struggling, you should definitely get help because you don't want to keep going down that path. God knows what would have happened if I just kept, you know, drinking myself to death or something. But, ultimately it [has] a positive message because I really think, as hard as things can be — even now during a pandemic — you should not give up and just keep trying.
What are your goals heading into the release, and soon into 2021?
So, my goal for this album release is trying to get this record out to as many people as humanly possible because I really think that it could be impactful. It doesn't even necessarily mean getting signed to a label. I feel like, if that's what I need to do, then that's what I want to do. I don't want to saym “I need to get signed to a label so I can get a major distribution” or whatever. A lot of people are independent musicians and they have great success. I just want to get it out there and have as many people [as possible] listen to it. I hope people like it; I hope people can relate to it.
For me, music is something that- it’s not like a hobby for me; it's something that I want to do as a career. And, once it's safe, I want to be on the road. I just want to be touring. And so, I hope this record can maybe lay out that kind of platform for me; open up some doors. In 2021, I hope that by the summer, we could be playing shows again. Probably, the audience would have to wear masks and social distance, but I think it's possible. I think it can be done.
I really hope that 2021 just brings music back, in a way, [with] indie music, specifically, because mainstream music is a different world. There's a lot of things that can be done, and they have a lot more money, and they can do the drive-ins and stuff or whatever. But, for us, for 100 or 200-cap shows, I hope those can come back so we can get on the road and really tour this record.
And another goal of mine, a really huge goal, is to get it pressed to vinyl. I did that with my old band, Elk Walking, but we did it completely independently. It was so expensive, and it didn't pay off because we didn't know what we were doing. And we didn't really have a label helping us out. So, I hope that maybe, I can get some support as far as a label, or people that would be willing to invest in me and believe in me, that could potentially help that make that happen. Maybe limited edition vinyl tapes or something...just having that physical thing to take with us on the road would be amazing.
Bonus question: if you could describe your music as a color, what would it be?
I guess I would have to say green, just because my whole vibe is earthy. I mean, I named my project after a tree, and the leaves are green on that tree. It’s funny, actually, because I was thinking about naming my album “green” at one point. Green has always been my favorite color, since I was a kid. I feel like that, as a person. So, if my music is what's coming out of me and my self-expression, then I would say that green really encompasses that.
Make sure to keep up with Burr Oak and stay tuned for their new single, out November 17th!