Experimental synthpop artist Grimes has just spent the past four years of her life writing, producing, and touring for her fourth album, the critically acclaimed Art Angels. And no matter how good the reception is or how happy you are with the finished result, that’s a lot of time to spend locked in on one thing. So perhaps it’s not surprising that Grimes wants to step away from music and do something else for a while. But what she plans to do instead is pretty unexpected: Grimes wants to become a UFC fighter.
“I’m gonna finish off this tour and then I’m going to start training for the UFC,” she told Zone Low of Beats 1 in a recent interview promoting her new song on the Suicide Squad sountrack. “I would like to spend the next two years training for the UFC. Upon failing that, then I will return to music.”
“I’m really serious. I haven’t had a break since before Visions (2012), like I’ve been touring and I just really wanna go at something else. I’ve got a lot of energy, I really enjoy working out. I just really want to be, to become an elite fighter. I’m actually dead serious about this.”
“I’m not going to make it into the UFC, obviously,” she admitted, taking a pragmatic tone about her unique plans for the next phase of her career. “Maybe I would get to fight some of my idols. But that would never happen. Trust me, it seems very hard. I just want to try really really hard at something totally insane that I’ve never done before, and I know it won’t work out, but I just wanna do it.”
This isn’t completely out of left field for those who have followed the artist closely on her social media accounts. Grimes is a Ronda Rousey superfan and has described UFC strawweight champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk as her style icon. And she has a reputation for following through on crazy dreams. Like trying to sail down the Mississippi in a houseboat. Or managing to become an indie pop queen.
Grimes is reaching for the stars with her UFC dreams. Even if she doesn’t make it all the way, we can’t wait to hear more about her training and perhaps some fights in smaller mixed martial arts leagues. There’s still room in the sport for latecomers who weren’t raised on Iowa wrestling teams or as part of a Brazilian jiu jitsu dynasty. All it takes is hard work and moxy, two things the Canadian musician seems ready to put in.
https://www.instagram.com/p/7bTWBCjfoy/
(Via Pitchfork)