Upcoming artist MXMTOON makes her music break for her hit single “Prom Dress” becoming a Tik Tok sensation.

“I wrote that after I ate a Double-Double from In-N-Out and then couldn’t fit in my prom dress and started having a panic attack,” the 19-year-old singer and songwriter said in an interview with MOXIE. 

Within several months, MXMTOON, also known as Maia gained millions of followers and subscribers on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram. “Prom Dress” became a TikTok trend as TikTok users tried on their old prom dresses tagging #promdress and #cryinginmypromdress. 

“I think it’s so funny and stupid how when you cry you’re supposed to shut yourself off from the world,” MXMTOON said in an interview with MOXIE. “So I posted a tweet that said ‘crying in my prom dress,’ and then I made it into a song.” 

MXMTOON began her music career recording songs in her parents’ guest bedroom. In 2017, she released a few comedic songs and her track “Feelings are Fatal” on SoundCloud. Her 2018 debut EP album “Plum Blossom,” featuring “Prom dress” gained 100 million streams on Spotify.

“At the time I was like, ‘Whatever—I have 200 followers, I’m just gonna post it,’” MXMTOON said in an interview with MOXIE. “But then people really responded to it, which made me realize that I needed to keep my music as candid as possible, because that’s what people connect with.”

MXMTOON’s newest album, ‘the masquerade’ was in collaboration with musician and producer Robin Skinner. MXMTOON selected 20-year-old Skinner based on their common lives as emerging artists.

“Robin and I are both artists who mostly work out of our bedrooms, so even though we had this gigantic studio, we made almost the entire album sitting right next to each other in the control room,” MXMTOON said in an interview with MOXIE. 

MXMTOON describes her 20-song album as “rhyming diary entries.” Her blend of flourishing ukulele symphonies, bubbly beats and wispy guitar tones create fairytale-like, beach acoustics.

“Writing songs was a way to express all the things I couldn’t talk about in face-to-face interactions, and share them with a community of people who maybe also needed to put up a façade to get through the day,” MXMTOON said in an interview with MOXIE. 

The Oakland, CA. singer and songwriter uses her ever-growing platform to speak out on social issues regarding immigration and LGBTQ+ rights as expressed through her lyrics. 

“As a young bisexual woman of color from a family of immigrants, a lot of current events directly affect who I am,” Chinese-American MXMTOON said in an interview with MOXIE. “I firmly believe it’s my obligation and opportunity to speak on issues that affect us all.”

MXMTOON will perform at The Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles, CA. on Sept. 27-28. 

“I hope people come away from it feeling like the songs belong to them too,” MXMTOON said in an interview with MOXIE. “Now there’s a piece of art in the world that speaks to their own experiences, even if they’d always felt like they were alone.”