Enigmatic electropop singer, songwriter, and producer Elohim doesn’t just make music; she transcribes the human experience into it. Combining her electronic music production skills with her classical training, Elohim (aka Valerie Lee) takes listeners through a journey of raw emotion with her unapologetically candid lyrics, all while serving up beats that you can’t help but move to—a truly fresh find in an era of pre-packaged music.
Since learning to play the piano at age five, Elohim developed a boundary-pushing relationship with music as she used it to express her unique way of experiencing the world–including her struggles with anxiety and panic attack disorder. This relationship would face the ultimate test when she experienced an acute mental health crisis right as she set off on a headlining tour in 2023. Instead of triumph, Elohim faced a dilemma that forced her to cancel her tour and pulled her entire livelihood into question.
Nonetheless, Elohim would persevere, completing her album The Power Of Panic and releasing the moving single “A Little Help” at the end of 2024. Today, she shares an inspiring story of resilience, creativity, and a passion for music that carried her through one of the darkest chapters of her life into a newly successful one.
EDM Maniac: You integrate profound themes from your lived experiences and the oftentimes challenging nature of being human into your music. Can you walk us through your creative process?
Elohim: It’s interesting because I think I’m just creative, and my brain is just always creating– whether I’m driving to the grocery store, lying in bed, or in the shower. I get so many of my most meaningful ideas in those moments where it’s unexpected–I write so much while driving! I don’t know that I’ve ever gone into traditionally making music. It’s very much like “I’m just going to create and if an album comes from this, amazing, and if it doesn’t feel like that, then oh well.” I’ll just keep creating and keep writing… I’m creating just to create and to get my little creatures and demons out and enjoy life.
EDM Maniac: Your last album, The Power of Panic, vividly depicts your struggles with your mental health. What’s the significance of the album title in this regard?
Elohim: It means something completely different now than when I made it, honestly. This was going to be the moment where I channeled my panic into something so powerful that I could overcome it. That was my story. That’s what I wanted, and the opposite happened.
I was probably at the worst I had ever been. I was taking so much Xanax because I could not get out of this cycle of panic and this heightened state of nervousness—fight or flight at every second of the day. I couldn’t sit up in bed without dry heaving. Nothing felt real. In the past, I’d have a hard time at the beginning of a tour, but I’d push through it and be okay. But this one felt different. That was the darkest.
So yeah, ironically, making that album, I wanted it to be this story of overcoming the worst, and I ended up falling into it worse than ever. But now I’m feeling so much better. Last year, I wrote 68 songs after taking the year off touring, being home, and just writing. It was one of the most productive years of my life. Whichever way you go, there’s always a sacrifice. But so much beauty can come out of it, too. So I don’t know; I think there was a purpose in all of it. There was a lot of sacrifice staying off of the road and stuff. But it ended up being an awesome year.
EDM Maniac: So you fell into this dark place, and the original message of the power panic no longer resonated. Yet you eventually found the motivation to keep writing music. How did you manage to finish the album?
Elohim: There was a moment when I was almost considering just starting new and not doing music anymore. But I think it’s just in my blood, in my veins, and my DNA to make and create. I took a little bit of a break, and then once I got back in, it felt like, oh shit, so much was pouring out of me. So it was pretty easy to finish the album, it was cathartic. The music I had made before meant even more to me after going through all of that. I couldn’t stay away from it.
EDM Maniac: You also released a single in December 2024 called “A Little Help.” There’s a passage in your song that goes: “I love you even though you hate yourself; everybody needs a little help.” And vice versa, “I love you even though I hate myself.”. Who is this dialogue directed to?
Elohim: I wrote it with one of my closest friends. It was sort of like a dialog between us. We’re always so kind to our friends, and I feel like we always hype up our friends, you know. But then we have this way of not doing the same to ourselves. I think the first line was something that someone had said to me. He said, “I like you despite all the things you say about you.” It’s amazing how often we say terrible things to ourselves. So this year, I’m really making a conscious effort to quiet that down. If do say a negative comment, I can correct it with a positive one. Those little things add up, and it does make you feel good.
EDM Maniac: Several other artists, including Griz and SVDDEN DEATH, have taken breaks or stepped back from touring and performing due to stress in recent years. What do you think is going on?
Elohim: I think we live in an interesting time right now where there is more focus and attention on mental health and our well-being as humans. We’re seeing our friends, our peers, other artists, and people we look up to taking their lives or overdosing. So I think we’re getting smarter and questioning if we have to be doing this many shows and not taking care of ourselves and partying and all this stuff. Maybe we can think outside of the box. What’s going to happen if you take a year off? Yes, I made less money, but as a human, it was very fulfilling. And I understand it’s a privilege to be able to do that. But I think that as humans, we care a little bit more about taking care of ourselves, which I think is a good thing.
EDM Maniac: What could the industry do to support better artists facing mental health challenges?
Elohim: I don’t know what it could do to be better in all honesty. I don’t think it’s a good industry for the mentally unwell and people who are dealing with a mental health crisis. Ironically, it’s an industry built on that–songwriters, musicians, and artists since forever have been maniacs. but I think a good step would be paying fairly, especially for streaming because taking care of your mental health is extremely difficult if you don’t have the means to do so.
EDM Maniac: How has your relationship with music and the electronic music scene changed since your incident?
Elohim: When you don’t have your health, it feels like you have nothing. So I value my health and myself more than the music industry. At the end of the end of the day, without that, you don’t have anything. It changed my entire perspective because now I want to do things that make me feel good…I started studying classical piano again and I learned an entire piece front to back, which was a huge accomplishment for me. I also feel like I made beautiful human connections by just like, sitting, talking, and laughing for hours with my piano teacher. It was just like, fuck everything else, this is what matters in life, and if you’re not enjoying it, what’s the point?
EDM Maniac: What insights from your experience would you share with other people who might be struggling with their mental health?
Elohim: So much of it comes down to having good people around you. And therapy is so helpful. If you can do it, get therapy, it’s so helpful! I get annoyed with people who say things like journaling alone will cure your anxiety…That’s such bullshit. For people who have really struggled, you know that when you’re at your worst, you can’t lift a pen, you can’t lift your hand, you can’t lift anything. You can’t do anything.
But that being said, writing through your feelings, exercising, walking, meditating, all these “cliche” things, they are actually helpful if you can somehow fit them into your everyday life. But community is fucking so important. You could be having the worst day, so you FaceTime one of your best friends and just talk about real shit, and you’ll feel different, you know?
EDM Maniac: As someone who’s been through something very similar, I can relate to that. Your journey story is so valuable to those who can relate. Thank you so much for chatting with us.
