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Ethel Cain

Hayden Silas Horner (born March 24, 1998), known professionally as Ethel Cain, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and model. Inspired by Christian music and Gregorian chant, with lyrics focused on nostalgic and Southern Gothic themes, her music has been associated with the ambient, indie rock, and folk genres. She has released multiple extended plays (EPs) on streaming platforms under various aliases, before officially starting her main project in mid-2019.

In 2022, Cain released her debut studio album titled Preacher's Daughter, to widespread acclaim from music critics—many of whom called it one of the best albums of the year. Following its release, she garnered a cult following online.

Early life

Cain was born on March 24, 1998, in Tallahassee, Florida, and was raised in Perry. She is the eldest of four children in a Southern Baptist family. Her father was a deacon, and she was involved in the church choir from a young age, like her mother. At age 8, Cain began studying classical piano, with musical influences from a variety of Christian music. The church was Cain's first exposure to music: "My whole life was always singing, always, always music all the time", Cain said. She left the church at the age of 16. Cain was homeschooled her entire life.

Career

2017–2021: Career beginnings and EPs

Anhedönia officially started making music in 2017, experimenting with "dreamy bedroom pop demos." Her first extended play under the Ethel Cain moniker, Carpet Bed, consisting of four songs, was released on September 13, 2019. Months later, she released her second extended play, Golden Age, on December 1. After the latter's release, she was backed by artist Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, who praised Cain for her "mature songwriting and understanding of melody". In January 2020, after recommendation from Wicca Phase Springs Eternal, Cain was discovered by rapper Lil Aaron. While headlining a show with Edith Underground, Girlfiend, and Lil Bo Weep in Los Angeles, Cain was invited by Aaron to meet with the publishing company Prescription Songs and signed with them soon after.

In February 2021, Anhedönia released her first single as Ethel Cain and under the new publishing contract, titled "Michelle Pfeiffer", featuring Lil Aaron. The song was described by Billboard as alternative rock, folk, and "even country". Her second single, "Crush", followed on March 18, and received a music video on August 3. A stripped version of the song was also published. The two singles were part of her third extended play titled Inbred, released on April 23. The ambient-folk and slowcore EP, was named by Pitchfork as one of The 49 Most Anticipated Albums of Spring 2021, and received a score of 7.6 out of 10 by the online music magazine. On March 8, 2022, she released a cover of the song "Everytime" by Britney Spears, as part of Spotify Singles, in observance of International Women's Day.

2022–present: Preacher's Daughter

On March 17, 2022, Cain released the single "Gibson Girl", subsequently announcing her debut album titled Preacher's Daughter, released on May 12, 2022, through her own record label, Daughters of Cain. A concept album that creates a narrative "centered around the character Ethel Cain", it received a positive reception from music critics, and was named one of the best albums of the year. It was also preceded by the release of the singles "Strangers", on April 7, and "American Teenager", on April 21, the latter receiving a music video on July 21. In support of the album, Cain embarked on the Freezer Bride Tour in 2022 and the Blood Stained Blonde Tour in 2023. She was also an opening act at one concert of Florence and the Machine's Dance Fever Tour, and Caroline Polachek's Spiraling Tour.

Cain performed at the 22nd Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2023. On June 3, 2023, Cain fainted on stage while performing at the Sydney Opera House in Sydney, Australia as part of Vivid Live, resulting in the show's cancellation. She returned to performing the next day. She also performed at Reading Festival and Gunnersbury Park with Boygenius and Muna in August 2023. On December 5, 2023, Cain announced the Childish Behaviour Tour, an eight-show tour set to begin on June 3, 2024, and end on June 27, 2024. After sharing the song on SoundCloud a year before, in 2023, she released "Famous Last Words (An Ode to Eaters)", inspired by Luca Guadagnino's film Bones and All, along with 1017 ALYX 9SM. With a "darkly poignant" music video, it was included in the project's first compilation album. Cain placed on the Forbes 30 Under 30 2024 for Music. She will be opening for Mitski's 2024 concert tour in support of her album The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We (2023). On February 14, 2024, she released a song titled "من النهر” (meaning "From the River"), which she described as a "prayer" for Palestinians.

Artistry

Cain's music style has mainly been classified as indie rock, gothic, folk, and alternative pop, as well as slowcore, Americana and ambient. She also finds inspiration from gospel music, country music, classic rock and alternative music. After Cain gained popularity with her single "Crush" from her EP Inbred (2021), this song being more-pop oriented than her usual alternative style, she talked about her "fear" of making pop music, saying that "once you make pop music, your other genres won't be taken as seriously", but "she has worked to make the music she wants". Ethel Cain plans to release a book surrounding the story of her album "Preacher's Daughter." Alongside a film once her trilogy albums are released.

Music critics have praised the "cinematography" in her songs, due to Cain's interest in movies and building songs with scenes and characters. According to BroadwayWorld, Cain musically combines "elements of rock, country and cinematic nostalgia" paired with "ethereal vocals and raw lyrics to create her unique sound". Her early musical influences included Karen Carpenter, the Steve Miller Band, and a variety of Christian music. By discovering pop music as a teenager, Cain named Florence Welch, lead vocalist of the band Florence and the Machine, as her "teen idol".

Personal life

Sexuality and identity

Cain came out as gay to her family at the age of 12, and on her 20th birthday, she publicly came out as a trans woman: "As I got older, I found out there were other options", she said. Reflecting on this, she recalled: "It was made clear to everyone that I was not like other people. Whenever I started to develop, I started to come into my own as a trans woman. We were a house divided—it was me versus my whole town." The singer identifies herself as a bisexual woman.

She is autistic, which she learned upon seeking a diagnosis in her adulthood. Reflecting on how being autistic has impacted her artistry, she has stated:

I’m autistic, and so that definitely heightens sensory everything. [...] I think that's why I have so much crossover between media, because it's like, there's never just one sense. Music is not just something you listen to. Film is not just something you watch. You get all these senses from all these things. When I'm producing music, I literally feel sometimes I can see it. I have to close my eyes, and I imagine the bass is the earth. I imagine the synths are rising up next to you, and I imagine the vocals are high in the sky, right in the center. I close my eyes and picture the sound around me – that's how I mix.

Religious beliefs

Reflecting on her religious upbringing in a 2021 interview, Cain said that she still considers herself a Southern Baptist: "Whether I like it or not, God always has and always will be a huge part of my life. Whether He's being used as a comforting figure or a threat, I've always been surrounded by it. It's not really something you can walk away from. And I'd rather just sit with it than be like 'Fuck the church!'" In an interview for Rolling Stone in August 2023, she revealed that all of her family have since left the church, though she clarified they are still religious in some ways. She elaborated in a Tumblr post in 2022 that she does not consider herself a Christian, nor as someone who cares about religion. However, she "still abides by the values [she] was raised on", such as kindness, graciousness, and loving thy neighbor.

Political views

The lyrics of Cain's song "American Teenager" express criticisms of US gun culture, anti-war sentiment, and political and religious disillusionment. It was included by former President of the United States Barack Obama in his list of favorite songs of 2022, which prompted surprise from Cain that a former president had included her "anti-war, anti-patriotism fake pop song" in his end of year list.

On February 14, 2024, she released a song on SoundCloud titled “من النهر,” which is Arabic for “From the River,” a reference to the pro-Palestinian phrase "From the river to the sea".

In May 2024, she seemingly called for the assassination of incumbent President of the United States Joe Biden; she had added a post discussing Biden's approval of a billion dollar arms sale to Israel on her Instagram story, with the caption "we need to bring back assassinations". She also called him a "bitch" in another story. She added, "feel like I'm taking crazy pills living in America in this day and age. Billionaires and politicians should be strung up in the street because what the hell is going on. And we can't even have a revolution because our terroristic military would crush us in a heartbeat if we tried to revolt."