Additional Information
Before the interview begins, Marie Davidson casually lets slip that she was just on a call with none other than The Age of Surveillance Capitalism author Shoshana Zuboff.
She mentions a new collaborative project with her, as well as an upcoming conference at Harvard. If that feels far removed from the music scene, it’s only on the surface. Marie Davidson has never stopped pushing its boundaries. Shoshana Zuboff’s writings run through the musician’s latest album, notably in the track Validations Weight, which delivers a raw and unsettling critique of technocracy. I had it on repeat all year long, wondering, “What happened during Marie Davidson’s two years of silence?”
We’ll learn more on February 7 under the Satosphère dome… and in the text that follows.
PAN M 360 : Lately, your discourse has been addressing the political and social implications of technoscience a lot. Can you tell us more about that?
Marie Davidson: I’m very politically engaged in my art—especially when it comes to the impact it has on our lives. At first, it was more of a discomfort I felt than a fully formed reflection. Gradually, social media entered our lives. At the beginning, for artists, it was mostly a way to share information—albums, concerts, tours. It really became problematic for me during the pandemic, when touring and promotion were no longer possible. Music promotion became intrinsically tied to our social media profiles. The pressure to constantly represent oneself became very intense. I was in conflict with that.
By the end of 2021, I even considered leaving my career. I withdrew for several months and applied to school. I was on the verge of going back to studying before realizing that music still held a central place in my life. I did, however, need to step back and rethink what it meant, for me, to be an artist in 2024.
PAN M 360 : How did you manage to regain control from there?
Marie Davidson : I had to weigh up the pros and cons and accept that if I wanted to continue my career in music, I would have no choice but to use social media, but that I would do so on my own terms. I needed to feel that I had control over my life and my choices, without succumbing to the pressure to follow the guidelines imposed on us by the platforms. The number of posts per week, the formats, how to present content to maximize visibility and views.
I represent myself the way I want to. And I refuse to do it under pressure, whether from labels, entities, promoters, or festivals. I don’t advertise for third parties. I post my way, when I want, how I want.
It took a lot of introspection to avoid compromising my art or my public identity.
Marie Davidson : Then I read The Age of Surveillance Capitalism, and I realized that it wasn’t just about music or the music industry. It affects all sectors. We are reduced to a form of slavery to the companies that offer services, whether it’s Google, Meta, or all the so-called smart technologies.
Each service has its own terms and conditions. We don’t read them. We click “accept.” They’re designed to be unreadable. But we need to understand what that means. By sharing our personal data, we’re selling part of our authenticity and our decision-making power. This data is resold to third parties. Companies know much more about us than we realize.
Little by little, we lose our ability to make decisions. Everything is formulated for us. Advertising is targeted. By accepting this, we sacrifice our decision-making power, our tastes, our critical thinking. And then it spreads to every level. We’re manipulated in our political opinions, the way we think, the way we vote, the way we judge others.
There is a great deal of violence online, a lot of opposition. Groups, identities, and products are pitted against each other. Political conflicts are exacerbated by online life. Even the information we consume and regurgitate is increasingly formatted. What worried me most while writing the album was the loss of our ability to form our own opinions and cultivate critical thinking.
For me, this is extremely alarming. So, that was an overview of the reasons that led me to write this album. I was talking about it with Shoshana just before. We both feel the need to make this subject accessible and to go beyond the academic framework or the closed intellectual circle.
THE FUTURE
PAN M 360 : It’s paradoxical, because for this discourse to become mainstream, it has to go through social media.
Marie Davidson : Yes, absolutely. You also have to find more playful, more light-hearted ways to present content that makes people think. It was in this context that I worked with an artist friend, Christopher Royal King—a musician I’ve collaborated with before. He works extensively with artificial intelligence, notably through a project called Total Emotional Awareness on Instagram. Together, we created AI-generated content for Instagram and YouTube, but in a critical way.
We used my image—videos of me—as well as political imagery and visuals found online. The idea was to hijack these tools to support the City of Clowns album campaign. To find a twist, both visually and in the lyrics, so that the message would come across without feeling too heavy. I’m not a pop artist, but some of my songs do get radio play. That’s already a lot.
PAN M 360 : There is also this movement around dumbphones. The New Yorker recently talked about this as a trend for 2026, almost like a new status symbol.
Marie Davidson : I like that, it’s encouraging. I don’t know how old you are, but I think it’s going to come from people younger than me. The worst part is for Gen Z. Personally, I’m fine, I’ve found my balance in all this, thanks to the awareness work I’ve done. But I’m worried about people in general. I’m also saddened by the poor quality of life of my generation and the generation below. Because it really affects people’s morale. Out of curiosity, where do you stand on this?
PAN M 360 : I joined Facebook when I was 13. I’m slowly getting rid of it.
Marie Davidson : Wow, that’s crazy. I got Facebook when I was 23. My friends had it way before me. I was protected during my childhood.
JOURNEY
PAN M 360 : When you started playing music at age 19, it was for your project with Les Momies de Palerme, right?
Marie Davidson : That’s right. I left school to pursue a career in music.
PAN M 360 : It’s funny, I’m talking about this because I’m actually wearing Momies de Palerme shirt.
Marie Davidson : You’re kidding me. I recognize it. An artist named Jessie did that. Wow!
PAN M 360 : I found it at a garage sale. Back in the days of Momies de Palermes, how did musicians network to go see shows?
Marie Davidson : Posters and word of mouth. Cafés, bars, record stores. Emails too. Facebook quietly arrived around 2008 or 2009, but I wasn’t really following it. It wasn’t until 2011 that I created an account, just to see what was going on. In 2012, when I released my first solo EP on Bandcamp, I understood the power of social media. That’s when my international career really took off. I experienced the complete transition. The “before” and “after.”
PAN M 360 : Some venues put stickers on cameras to prevent photos being taken. Would you be in favor of that at your concerts?
Marie Davidson : Personally, I don’t care. In an immersive club setting, like in Berlin or at Berghain, I’m totally in favor of it. No photos, you let yourself go. However, in life in general, I believe above all in individual freedom. I’m all for creative use. What I oppose is the appropriation of our data and the control exercised by large platforms. The problem isn’t the medium, it’s the capitalism that surrounds it.
AT DÔMESICLE
PAN M 360 : Let’s talk about S.A.T. Are you preparing anything special for your DJ set?
Marie Davidson : For me, a DJ set is always something new. DJing allows me to be more spontaneous. I play some of my own music, but mostly other people’s. It’s the pleasure of sharing, of making people dance. My sets are fun, energetic, not too serious. That’s really important to me. That’s always what I aim for. Live performances are more intense. They’re fun too, but maybe a little more challenging. Now that I’ve seen you and know what you look like. Come and say hello if we bump into each other.
PAN M 360 : I’ll be wearing my Momies de Palerme shirt.
In the end, we didn’t talk much about music during this interview, but with Marie Davidson, talking about concepts is talking about her art. She embodies her ideas through everything she does. Everything blends together with clarity in her universe. To dive into it, I highly recommend reading this interview conducted by Alain Brunet in the days following the release of her latest album.
