Lauren Isenberg -or better known professionally as renforshort- is a twenty-year-old blossoming alternative pop artist born and based out of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. renforshort is on a collision course for a successful career in music as the newest icon to hit the genre of alternative pop and the music industry in general. Featuring the head-turning singles, "moshpit, "made for you," "i miss myself," and "we'll make this okay" -which additionally features Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker- renforshort's debut album, dear amelia, was released on July 8, 2022, via Interscope Records.
On her debut album, dear amelia, as well as her previous singles and two EPs, Teen Angst (2020) and Off Saint Dominique (2021), Ren has always written music with her unfiltered lyricism -which has tackled an array of topics such as depression, disassociation, anxiety, and self-erasure. "With every record, I find I get more vulnerable. I think these are the most emotional songs I've written in my career," Ren expresses. Since she began songwriting, she has known what message she wanted to share with others within her music. "Since I started making music, it's been about writing things, writing songs that are very emotional. I mean, not only in a relationship sense but also in what I'm going through that I feel would help other people. You know, kind of what goes on in my head on a day-by-day basis. When I write my own music, I try to make it as almost as open as possible for the listener to interpret while still having a clear message," Ren reveals.
dear amelia has a slew of collaborators -both on the front line as featured artists and behind the scenes- that includes her longtime collaborator Jeff Hazin (Anna Sofia). In addition to Jeff Hazin, producers/co-writers in names such as David Pramik (Oliver Tree, Machine Gun Kelly), Alexander 23 (Tate McRae, mxmtoon, Olivia Rodrigo), Andy Seltzer (Chelsea Cutler, Lil Huddy), John Ryan (One Direction, Maroon 5), Tia Scola (Olivia O'Brian, Astrid S), and lastly, Nick Long (Machine Gun Kelly, King Princess), all lent their talents to the project.
Before Ren gets into a writing or recording session, she likes to have some sort of relationship with her collaborators to make the process a lot easier for her. "The main criteria is, like, do I get along with this person? How easy is it for me to open up to this person? That's kind of what, you know, kind of helps me pick who I will work with," Ren shares. At the forefront of Ren's sonically eclectic debut album, she managed to recruit Travis Barker of Blink-182 fame to perform the drums on her hyperpop single, "we'll make this okay." One of her dream collaborators in singer-songwriter Jake Bugg, which is featured on the second verse of her track, "let you down." Matter of fact, the song, nor Jake Bugg, nearly never made it onto the album. Ren explains, "I manifested it. Basically, I said to him [her manager], 'I'm not writing a second verse. I'm not putting this song out unless Jake Bugg is on it.' Like 'pfft, okay.' He comes back a couple of months later and is like, 'Here's an update of the song.' And Jake Bugg was on it. I started balling my eyes out." In addition to Jake Bugg, Ren has one other "far-fetched" dream collaborator she would love to work with: "Maybe Julian Casablancas, actually," Ren smiles and laughs. "Like there's no way getting to him." Ultimately, Ren released a track on the record titled "Julian, king of manhattan" about The Strokes frontman.
As a young female artist in the music industry -and starting in it as a teenager at seventeen years old- she has passionately forged a sapient viewpoint on the inequalities of women as a whole in the industry. She's very passionate to see changes happen in the future. "There's a lot I think needs to be changed in the industry as women...there's a lot in the world that needs to change for women!" Ren proclaims. "I would love to be able to go into a session and feel 100% comfortable, you know. Which I don't and never have. I've had experiences that have reaffirmed that, and that sucks," divulges Ren. "I would also like to be taken more seriously...A lot of people feel intimidated by powerful women, and as much as I would love people to be intimidated by me as I feel like they would listen to me, just look at me like I'm a person and listen to me...and be receptive. There are a lot of things that I would like to see change, and I am very passionate about that... Keep pushing! Be loud!" Ren continues.
renforshort is fresh off the road after a stint of dates with The Band CAMINO in the United States. To further her push against industry standards, on this particular tour, Ren made a beneficial judgment call to have a preponderance of females be a part of her touring team. "My last tour was all men, and I love them so much, but having these women on tour with me is what I needed," Ren recalls. "It's so empowering because we would go to these venues, and the venue staff would be like, 'Oh, are your husbands performing tonight?' And we'd be like, 'No, we're doing it.' While that was very hurtful, they kept inspiring us to show them. I think having those women there made it a very comfortable environment for me. It's like having a friend on the road." Later this year, renforshort will return to touring.
This forthcoming tour in the fall is renforshort's first-ever headlining tour. "I have done one headline show. It was actually genuinely the best night of my life. So much endorphins," Ren happily reminisces with a smile ear to ear. With her first headlining tour on the horizon, Ren is actively looking forward to pushing her artistry past her usual norms of writing and recording music and can't wait to get to work on other aspects that she's in control of in a live headline performance and tour. "I'm really excited to plan out a show," she declares. "The lighting, the pace, being able to speak more, and actually interact with the audience more." That's precisely what Ren is looking forward to most in creating her new live show. "On a headline, you as an artist can be more you. The stage design is you, the lighting is you, everything is you. It's really awesome to have another outlet to express your artistry." renforshort's headliner will begin on September 15th in her hometown of Toronto at the Long Boat Hall. The tour sees two performances scheduled at Riot Fest in Chicago and Firefly Festival in Dover, DE, and she'll roll through North America until October 5th -the tour's final date in Los Angeles at the Moroccan Lounge. You can stream dear amelia now on all digital streaming platforms and you can grab tickets to renforshort's fall 2022 tour here.
Sept. 15 - Toronto, ON - Long Boat Hall Sept. 17 - Detroit, MI - The Loving Touch Sept. 18 - Chicago, IL - Riot Fest Sept. 20 - Pittsburgh, PA - Thunderbird Sept. 22 - Nashville, TN- The End Sept. 23 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade (Purgatory) Sept. 25 - Dover, DE - Firefly Festival Sept. 27 - Washington, DC - Songbyrd Music House Sept. 28 - New York, NY - Baby’s All Right Oct. 1 - Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall Oct. 2 - Montreal, QC - Pop Montreal at Le Ministere Oct. 5 - Los Angeles, CA - Moroccan Lounge