Petey USA is a cross-media phenomenon. Not only does he craft highly celebrated, electronically infused indie rock, but he’s also a hilarious TikTok personality with over 1.5 million followers. His wit seamlessly transfers from short-form comedy videos into his lyrics, which first drew listeners in with his 2021 debut album Lean Into Life.
Right out of the gate, Petey was juxtaposing men getting in touch with their feelings and bonding over it — set against backdrops of watching The OC on "DON'T TELL THE BOYS" — or realizing you’ve lost touch with someone and now only know what they’re up to via their Venmo transactions ("Apple TV Remote"). A wordsmith at heart, Petey has a unique gift for flipping something painfully relatable into something both hilarious and deeply emotional.
With his upcoming third album The Yips, Petey presents a culmination of the themes and styles from his first two records, this time through a conceptual lens: each track is a story overheard in a bar, each person wrestling with their own struggles (Yips) –
Yips: plural noun | /yips/
(informal, sports) A sudden and inexplicable loss of ability to perform basic, routine actions — most commonly experienced by athletes under pressure.
(figurative) A mental or emotional block disrupting performance or confidence in everyday life.
In our interview, we explore how the yips show up in everyday life — not just in sports — and what that looks like for different people. We also go off-court in the best way possible, discussing everything from Family Matters’ Jazz, Chris Walla of Death Cab for Cutie, TikTok, Fred Durst, a mythical creature from the woods of Wisconsin called a Hodag, Mark Hoppus, and the sound two-by-fours make when smashed together.
This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
Ricky Adams @ The Needle Drop: You’ve got a new album — your third — The Yips, coming out in July. Can you tell me a bit about it?
Petey USA: This all started coming together when I was on tour. My last album cycle with USA was extended quite a bit with a bunch of support tours that I was on, so I found myself on the road during times when I thought I would be off and have time to write an album. This was the first album that I've written transiently, I guess — with really small windows in between gigs to get the writing done. That's something I was pretty afraid of. In albums past, I always thought I would need to isolate myself for a couple of months or whatever and really take my time to get it done. That was not the case with this one. I actually really benefited a lot from moving and grooving, just finding the gaps to finish things and having deadlines. I’ve learned, I'm 33, and I'm just this year learning how important it is for me to have deadlines, structure, schedules, everything, to get anything done.
So that was cool, because it's my favorite album I've done so far, and I had the least amount of time to do it. Chris Walla [formerly of] Death Cab for Cutie produced it. He's my favorite record producer, and he's my favorite guitar player. Death Cab was my favorite band in high school. That was all... I don't know. It was weird, trippy dream-type stuff. He was flying remotely from Norway to do it. So, yeah, there were all these different elements like that. From the get-go, it felt like there was a lot of pressure — a lot of personal pressure, a lot of spiritual pressure, and a lot of it was pressure against time to get it done. But it was all positive.
Did you play all the instruments on the record?
I played all the instruments on... let's see... “The Milkman”, “I'm Not a Cowboy”, and “I'll Believe You”. So, only about three or four of the tracks. The touring band and Chris played with me on the rest.
That was a new thing with this album, too. On the past two records, I played all the instruments. But this one — I think because of time limitations and Chris coming over from Norway — he was looking at our Audiotree performance on YouTube, and just without much experience working with me, I think he was like, “If I'm going to L.A., I want to do that, because I can see it.”
So that's what we did. And again, using a band and stuff — it was cool because I had to get my shit together quicker and more clearly beforehand. When it’s just me alone with the producer, it’s confusing for a lot of it. Then it all comes together at the last minute. This time, I was like, okay, I have to at least have the solid structures done before we start. So yeah, it was different in that way.
I heard a saxophone on one of the tracks, I forget which one, and thought, damn, is that Petey doing the solo?
Oh no — hell no. That’s a funny story. It’s Chris’s good friend from Norway, a guy named Harald Lassen. He did that remotely in Norway after we finished the track, and he just crushed it. I think that solo is so good. We did a couple of passes of it, and there was a funny moment where, after the first couple of takes, I was like, “This is awesome.” And I gave a note to Chris — I said, “Could it be a little more modern jazz and a little less Family Matters?” And Chris goes, “Dude, he’s Norwegian. Those two things are the same.” I was like, “All right, tell him to lean into whatever the fuck — I don’t know what I’m talking about either.”
He just absolutely destroyed it. I’m thrilled with that. It’s my favorite moment on the album.
What was the first instrument you learned? And what’s your go-to instrument when you’re starting to write something new?
Drums are the first instrument I learned, and the only instrument I’m actually good at. I’ve been playing drums since I was in second grade. I always think about approaching writing songs through the lens of a drummer. A lot of my songs are very heavy, like rhythmic, hook-based. A lot of them are pretty linear, but have the percussive element build as it goes on — that’s what I really like to do. I basically am forced against my will to learn my own songs on guitar after they’re recorded. That’s difficult for me. I’m getting better at guitar, but it’s something I don’t love to do. I’m trying to learn to love it now, especially after recording this album, because Chris is just such a masterful guitar guy. Watching him play and watching him just like... I don’t know. I was really inspired by his guitar playing, and it inspired me to just get good at it and take it seriously. It was always an afterthought for me until this.
How did Chris Walla get involved in the project?
It was always like a pipe dream, just because he's a hero of mine. I didn’t think that he’d be into it. I mean, I was shocked when my team reached out and he came back being like, "I know Petey, and I’m into it." It was pretty shocking. As soon as I found out that he was interested, it was a no-brainer. There wasn’t really any shopping around — it was just like, what can we do to make this work? Logistically, with him being in Norway, there were a couple of hurdles to get over. But I really wasn’t looking around for anyone else. He was the main guy that we wanted.
On the TikTok side, your comedy channel has really taken off. How did that get started, and do you see that and your music as separate projects, or do they overlap? There’s definitely a similar sense of humor in both.
We started doing the TikTok videos during COVID because there was nothing else to do. I had just signed with an indie label right before everything shut down. I had enough money to survive, but no shows to play. My record was done, and so it was just like, "All right, what can we do to build up any internet presence before this?"
My first instinct was just to do comedy videos, and it started taking off right away — pretty much out of the gate. We just kept on doing them. I didn’t know what the payoff would be or what any of it meant, but we did it. We had nothing else to do, so we did it every day. It was me and my manager, Will, pretty much every day for a whole year. By the time COVID finished, we had over a million followers on TikTok. We put shows on sale, and the shows sold out. People were into the music; they connected the dots themselves.
As far as the videos for some music and where they come from, it’s all just... I don’t know. It’s whatever my brain does with an assignment. Like I said earlier, I really need assignments to focus my attention on something. The past two years, I’ve been with a major label, and that’s a big fucking assignment. It’s just like, if I get paid upfront to do something, that’s what I’m going to do. Yeah, I’m going to focus my attention on recording the best album I can. And then, once you record the best album you can, you have to tour. That’s the structure I need to make it work.
In COVID, the only assignment was to stay in your backyard. So I was like, okay, hell yeah, I’m going to crush this. So we did a bunch of TikToks. It’s just whatever the world tells me to do to survive, that’s what I’m going to do. That’s where I’m going to focus my creative attention.
@peteyusa Strongest baby ever maybe
♬ original sound - Petey
I saw you did a TikTok with Fred Durst. How did that come about?
Yeah, early on, he was one of the first comedy collaborators, and he hit me up to do a video early on. He was just a fan of the stuff. We had one Zoom chat about it, then he came over. We chilled for an afternoon and just made a funny video. He was a really nice guy.
@peteyusa A guy in my tarp @freddurst ♬ original sound - Petey
Did you listen to him when you were growing up?
For sure. Yeah, that was part of it... I don’t know, like every 13-year-old kid, it just felt badass. And it kind of felt like a secret, totally.
You’ve released a video for each single off The Yips. Do you approach those music videos differently from your TikToks?
We just did the “As Two People Drift Apart” video. We shoot them pretty much the same way we do the TikToks — just a lot of versions of me. We piece it together ourselves and don’t bring any extra crew. With me and Crane working on the videos, it’s always about how we can get across the emotion of the idea without worrying too much about the technical stuff. Neither of us are professional cinematographers, so we keep it simple — finding the lowest-effort way to deliver maximum emotion. We like making videos on a budget, renting funny props and costumes, then just showing up with one camera and trying to make the most out of what we have.
The monster in the videos — is that the same one on the album cover? What’s the story or symbolism behind that character?
That monster is called a Hodag. It’s a mythological creature rumored to dwell in the North Woods of Wisconsin — kind of like Wisconsin’s version of Bigfoot or the Yeti. It’s part of the local lore in a town called Rhinelander, Wisconsin. The Hodag is basically a lizard with huge teeth and feathers. I was always obsessed with it as a kid. I grew up in the Midwest, and a lot of people vacation in Northern Wisconsin. It’s a big destination for folks from Chicago.
I love the idea of a scary monster lurking in the woods. The concept behind it ties into the album’s theme of having the Yips, which is about struggling mentally — a mental block that keeps you from living your life. The idea is about escaping to the woods to figure things out, maybe running into this creature, and having an imaginary friend to help you talk yourself out of a bad spot and move forward.
I saw some early TikToks before “The Milkman” dropped where you called the song "The Milkman Cometh". Was there some kind of issue with that title?
I wanted the song to be called “The Milkman Cometh", but the larger team thought that might not be the best strategy. I’m not sure — I just thought it would be funny. I always struggle with how funny things should be and how seriously I should take myself. I never know where the line is. So we compromised and went with "The Milkman". There were a bunch of names floating around for that song. I actually texted Mark Hoppus from Blink-182 all the options because I was really struggling with it, and he said he liked “The Milkman", so that’s what I went with.
That whip sound in that song really goes off. Was that inspired by something specific, or did it just naturally fall into place?
That is two 2x4 pieces of wood — plywood — being smacked together. The reference for that came from listening to “Head Over Heels” by the Go-Go's. I was like, "We’ve got to fucking do that. That is so sick." We were listening to that song a lot in the studio, and I just thought, it fucking needs that. So we just smacked it. The studio we were working in was John Congleton's, and there was a back room with a bunch of wood — they were doing some construction, so there were a lot of pieces lying around. I just smacked two blocks together, and that was that. But honestly, that’s my favorite part of the song.
Your lyrics feel familiar in a way, like little snapshots of real life, but they’re also super clever and often flip a phrase on its head. What’s your writing process like? Is it mostly fiction, or are you drawing from your own life? Like, did you actually only watch The OC, until Marissa died ("DON'T TELL THE BOYS")?
That one — yeah, I actually did. I was obsessed with The OC, and I actually only watched it until season 3. I think I gave season 4 twenty minutes and was like, "This is fucked." It was pretty clear that show was over at that point.
But my lyrics are... a lot of it is autobiographical, and a lot of it is based on people that I know. And a lot of it is also... it's like split into thirds: a third autobiographical, a third based on people that I know, and a third is imagining what something would feel like, if that makes sense. I think I’ve been around long enough, and I’ve seen enough people just going through it, to be able to understand what that specific thing could feel like, based on what I’ve gone through or what other people around me have gone through. So there’s a lot of that. There’s a lot of imagining what the future looks like.
The track “I'm Not a Cowboy” is about a guy getting a divorce. I’ve never been divorced before, but it’s about looking into the future and imagining what that might feel like — based on conversations with people that I know who have gotten divorced, and based on what I’ve felt like feeling hopeless.
Were there any specific bands, albums, songs, or even non-music influences that shaped The Yips? I got a little bit of an R.E.M. “It’s the End of the World as We Know It” vibe from the delivery on “The Milkman”.
R.E.M. is probably my biggest influence besides Death Cab and Modest Mouse. But R.E.M. is huge for me. I grew up in Chicago and used to listen to 93XRT — it's just the main station in Chicago. It's pretty legendary, and they play R.E.M. incessantly.
My dad's obsessed with R.E.M. That’s the first concert that I ever went to. I think I try and sing like Michael Stipe, it's just ingrained in how I think about making music. I love his lyrics. I love the permission that he gives himself to be corny — in the best way possible. Whenever I come up with a lyric, especially in a song like “Family of Six” or something, and I'm like, "Fuck, is this corny as hell?" I’ll go and listen to R.E.M. and be like, "Oh, no, I'm good." I mean that in the best way possible, because those are my favorite songs of all time. So yeah, pretty instrumental.
Another band that I was listening to a lot during the recording of this, that I had gotten into, was Hysteria by Def Leppard. Super hard. I was just like, I missed that one too, just because I wrote it off as this hair metal, glam rock, Poison thing that I wasn’t super into. I didn’t realize that Hysteria is just a fucking world-class, incredible classic rock album. It's just so indicative of modern pop music. You hear so many callbacks and references to that in music now — whether it's Chappell Roan or The 1975. It's all in this album, and I became obsessed with it. And I still am.
Any final thoughts about The Yips you’d like to share with listeners — or any other projects in the works you’re excited about?
I would say that “The Yips” itself — the song — is my favorite thing I’ve ever made. Out of all the records I’ve done, I really tried my best to create a world around it. It’s an invitation to step into that world, to take whatever you want from the songs, to prescribe whatever meaning you want to them.
"The yips" is a sports term, but it’s also a pretty nebulous concept. So, however you want to define that for yourself is valid. I think it’s just permission to come hang out with it and see what resonates with you, because there are a lot of different paths and ideas floating around within the story. And I think it could be really cathartic for some people.
I’m going on tour — I’ll be touring in October and playing a couple of album release shows in July. Those will be really fun. And we’ve got a few extra tracks coming out after the album for an EP, because we had some leftovers. That’s really fun too.
The Yips Album Release Shows
7/9 – Chicago, IL – Metro
7/11 – Brooklyn, NY – Music Hall of Williamsburg
7/15 – West Hollywood, CA – The Troubadour
Supporting Rainbow Kitten Surprise
7/25 – Columbia, MD – Chrysalis at Merriweather Park
7/26 – Asbury Park, NJ – Stone Pony Summer Stage
7/27 – LaFayette, NY – Beak & Skiff Apple Orchards
Supporting Zach Bryan
8/30 – Huntington, WV – Joan C. Edwards Stadium
The Yips is out July 11 via Capitol Records. You can pre-order it here.
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