ET exclusively spoke with the singer ahead of his 17th birthday.
Payton Moormeier is giving fans some insight into the inspiration behind his music!
ET spoke with the TikTok star ahead of his 17th birthday this month, where he discussed everything from his brand new single, "Habits," to what qualities he's looking for in a girlfriend and more.
Released on July 17, "Habits" is the follow-up to Moormeier's debut single, "Love Letter," which was inspired by the feelings he felt after an ex ended their relationship abruptly.
"I have a little studio in my room back in North Carolina where I'm from and I was just sitting there. I really did want to write something a little more lyrical and a little more deeper on how I feel and stuff that I do," Moormeier told ET's Katie Krause of how "Habits" came to be. "So I just started writing the song right there in my room. It's really just inspired by habits that I have that I hate, and that I still have to deal with."
"It was a little difficult because when I'm writing I try and, like, relive emotions just to get the best explanation that I can of how I'm feeling," he added. "So obviously just going back through those times, all that stuff, yeah, it definitely was a little hard. But it gave the song emotion."
While Moormeier could easily write about a plethora of topics, he said writing about "heartbreak stuff" and "girls" is his favorite, because he knows so many of his fans can relate.
"I'll just be, like, driving and [an idea] will just hit," he explained. "I like being more vulnerable in my songs just because I'll get those people that are going through the same thing that I am, that can relate to my music and, like, actually listen to it with a purpose."
In the beginning of "Love Letter," Moormeier asks the question, "What's love? Can you tell me that?" So naturally, we had to put him on the spot and ask what love means to him right now, as his career is rising and he's acquiring new followers daily.
"I'm actually kind of at a point in my life right now where I'm really focusing on myself and not trying to get into other things. So I don't actually know, I haven't really been thinking about stuff like that," he confessed. "I want somebody that's gonna support me all the time, and just have a natural connection. Like, I really love connections and just vibing with people, so I guess that's love to me."
Moormeier currently has over 4.4 million followers on Instagram, and over 12.8 million on TikTok. He admitted to ET that he's definitely slid into some DMs, and that he does have a crush on one female TikTok influencer!
"Yeah, there definitely is [one]," he said, playing coy on who it is. "I don't know if I can say. It's kinda like best tea. Like, my fans will go crazy. She's a smaller account. That's all I'm gonna [say]."
"I, like, slide in people's DMs sometimes. Like, 'Yo!' I literally just say, 'Yo! How's it going?'" he added. "Sometimes I get left on 'read.' I get left on 'read' all the time."
During the candid interview, Moormeier also addressed the controversial Hype House party that was thrown amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. James Charles, Tana Mongeau and the D'Amelio sisters were just a few of the guests in attendance for the birthday bash celebrating Hype House member Larray.
"I'm not, like, a big party person. Especially right now with everything going on, like, partying and stuff is not the way to go," he said. "I was invited to it, but me, personally, I'm just not in the mood right now. I can't speak for anybody else but, yeah, that's just not the move right now."
Hear more in the video below.
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