High above the chaos of LA, in the tranquil mountain town of Crestline, Edgar Everyone is carving out his own sonic sanctuary
Born in the artistic whirlwind of Paris, he swapped the city’s intellectual hustle for California’s laid-back creativity in 2016—a move that’s left an indelible mark on his sound.
After years of producing for others, the pandemic gave Edgar the space to step into the spotlight, crafting music that blends indie rock, electronic depth, and a touch of 70s funk.
Now, with plans to drop a new single every month in 2025 (while squeezing in a tour with Geographer), Edgar is ready to embrace his own creative chaos.
From reimagining Last Christmas into a groove-laden dance track to finding joy in DJ sets and mountain hikes, Edgar is all about balance—between art and life, simplicity and ambition.
HAPPY: What are you up to today?
EDGAR EVERYONE: Today I’m just relaxing in my little mountain town of Crestline, California.
I live up in altitude, about 5400 feet above the city. I can see some clouds over the LA suburbs, and I’m feeling lucky to have blue skies and to be surrounded by trees.
I have to work on some mixes for a client later, so I guess I’m living my typical hermit / musician life.
HAPPY: Tell us a little bit about where you are from, what do you love about it?
EDGAR EVERYONE: I was born and raised in Paris, France. Paris is such an interesting city but also very intense, once you understand what it’s all about.
What I mean is that it’s constantly bustling with people, parties, commerce, shows, and it can become a bit overwhelming.
As a kid and a teenager, I felt the influence of all that creativity around me, I loved all the artistic endeavors, the richness of studying philosophy, politics, and science.
But also, Paris has a tendency to be a little intellectual, stressed, and somehow disconnected from nature – I didn’t really know it as a child, the only place to go was the local park.
HAPPY: How has your journey from Paris to California influenced your sound?
EDGAR EVERYONE: After moving to California in 2016, I started discovering some new ideas that really helped my music to bloom: I think Americans have a talent for blending work with fun, meaning that they are not as ‘heavy’ as the French when it comes to finishing projects or putting on the lab coat.
In France I remember staying up very late in studio sessions and we would physically and mentally exhaust ourselves – it’s not that it doesn’t exist in the U.S., but the lighthearted mentality at work definitely helps you get things done in a healthier way.
And the prevalence of beautiful nature in California definitely helped as well. All in all, there’s a sense of space and non-judgment that feel so good to me here, it’s really helpful to soothe the inner critic, and accept your own self.
HAPPY: Who or what are some of your biggest influences as an artist?
EDGAR EVERYONE: I’ve been influenced by many things over the years, but I have a particular knack for indie and alternative rock bands: Radiohead for their innovative nature and the insane depth of their compositions, Interpol for the simplicity of the arrangement while keeping it very soulful, Tame Impala for its tones, the excitement, and the musicality of its melodies.
I’m also very interested in electronic music, someone like John Hopkins is a mastermind at that in my opinion, he’s a world builder and now he started making psychedelic healing music.
And more recently, I’ve started diving into the 70s soul/funk that feels so great to dance to.
HAPPY: You’ve worked behind the scenes in the industry for years. How has that shaped your approach to creating your own music?
EDGAR EVERYONE: That’s right, I’ve been producing and mixing music for other projects the last 10 years or so.
Being in this position has resulted in two things: first, I’ve really honed in my skills for working with the studio equipment, deepening my musical knowledge, and bathing in multiple genres and approaches that taught me a lot about the creative process; but also, it created a bit of frustration because I was so busy, I couldn’t work on my own music.
Then during the pandemic, everything slowed down, and I had time to reconnect with myself and so I started writing a bunch of songs which I released under the moniker Edgar Everyone.
HAPPY: Why did you choose Last Christmas for your holiday cover? What makes it special to you?
EDGAR EVERYONE: Initially I was asked to play a Christmas song for this local event called the Blue Jay Christmas Parade, which funny enough is in the Guinness book of world records for “Shortest Parade Route” – my friend Gavin and I were brainstorming to find which song to cover and when we stumbled upon Last Christmas, we looked at each other and instantly knew it was the one!
I remember loving this track as a kid, but it entirely disappeared from my memory, so I was really happy to rediscover it and learn to sing it. One thing led to another, and then I thought “I might as well record it properly” and release it.
HAPPY: Can you tell us a bit about the creative process behind Last Christmas? How did the recording and production come together for this release?
EDGAR EVERYONE: So then I walked into my studio and started the recording process… Having a great song to work with makes it so much easier – the structure, the chords, the words are already dialed in thanks to George Michael – so my job was to find the right tones, something that makes my body dance and feels more current.
I really wanted to stay true to the original, even in the way I sang it, but I was really focusing on making it super danceable.
I remember being ecstatic and jumping around for half an hour once I had dialed in the groove, with the right drum samples, keyboards and bass line.
It’s such a lighthearted and silly tune, it makes me smile!
HAPPY: What’s on your ultimate Christmas playlist besides Last Christmas? Any guilty pleasures?
EDGAR EVERYONE: Honestly, I’m not a fan of Christmas songs at all! I’ve always been allergic to the classic tunes like “Jingle Bells” or “Sleigh Ride” because they feel like they’ve been so overplayed…
I do have to give a shout out to my friend Mack (MACKandgold) because this year she played a special Christmas show in LA where she interpreted all these standard tunes with a jazz band: drums, vibraphone, double bass; and she’s a killer performer so that made me appreciate these tracks under a new light.
HAPPY: You’ve got big plans for 2025, including a single every month. What’s driving that creative energy right now?
EDGAR EVERYONE: That’s right! However, I’m going on tour with Geographer pretty soon (Animal Shapes 15th anniversary), so I’ll have to review this goal and probably release a little less than that.
It’s always about finding that balance between projects for others and my own! I basically have a lot of Edgar songs that I never got to finish, mostly because of my own perfectionism – so the minute I get back from tour I’ll be so determined to finish them.
I’ve done a lot of work on myself and the creative process is only getting more fun and more exciting at this point.
Time to break free from my own blockages!
HAPPY: What makes you happy?
EDGAR EVERYONE: Recently I learned to DJ, and every DJ set that I’ve played has brought me an immense sense of happiness.
It’s so fun to be one with the audience and to feel out what they’re ready to dance to. Otherwise, I feel happy with simple things on a daily: I meditate every morning and that’s become a non-negotiable, I like to go out to clubs and dance, I like to cook, I like to hikes and snowboard.
The older I get, the more I take pleasure in the simplicity of life.
