Salem Ilese Davern (born August 19, 1999) is an American singer-songwriter best known for her viral singles "Mad at Disney" and "PS5". She has also co-written songs for artists such as Bella Poarch and Demi Lovato.

Originally from Mill Valley, California, Ilese started taking songwriting classes with Bonnie Hayes when she was ten years old and spent two years majoring in Hayes' songwriting program at the Berklee College of Music. Ilese moved to Los Angeles, where she signed to Homemade Projects and released her debut EP, 757, in 2019.

In 2020, Ilese released the song "Mad at Disney" after a series of Disney live-action remakes which drew the ire of fans. It became her breakout hit because of its popularity on social media platforms such as TikTok and was certified gold by the RIAA. In 2021, Ilese released her second EP (L)only Child and collaborated with Alan Walker on "Fake a Smile". She found her next online hit with 2022's "PS5", a collaboration with Tomorrow X Together which featured Walker. In 2023, she released her debut album high concept. Ilese's pop songs are usually about dissatisfied relationships and written around a single hook, particularly brand names. This style of songwriting—sometimes dubbed the "mad at disney genre"—has been criticized as inauthentic, overused and purposefully written to attract attention on social media.

Early life

Born on August 19, 1999, Salem Ilese Davern was originally from Mill Valley, California.^[1][2]

Her songwriting career started at the age of 10 when she began classes with Bonnie Hayes (songwriter for Bonnie Raitt and Cher) in San Francisco. She also attended Berklee College of Music.^[1][3]

Career

Her single, "Mad at Disney", was awarded gold by the RIAA.^[4][5] The song peaked at number 67 on the Billboard Global 200 in 2020,^[6] and appeared on the Rolling Stone Top 100 Popular Songs in 2020.^[7] Additionally, Ilese co-wrote Jamie Miller's "Here's Your Perfect", Bella Poarch's "Build a Bitch," Tomorrow X Together's "Anti-Romantic". Her EP "(L)only Child" was released with a food truck in May 2021.

Her other song, "Crypto Boy",^[8] rose in popularity in social media including YouTube Shorts and TikTok.

Also, she wrote and sung with Tomorrow X Together, produced by Alan Walker, the song PS5 in 2022 which was a big success on social media.

In July 2023, She then announced that she would release her debut album, "high concept", on September 15, 2023. The album was promoted with the release of several singles including "Strongly Worded Letter" and "PainHub".

Artistry

AllMusic's Marcy Donelson described Ilese's style as "dissatisfied, relationship-themed dance-pop".^[2] Ilese often writes songs around a single concept.^[1] She considers brand and product names help songs gain traction.^[2][3]

Writing for NBC News, Morgan Sung noted that some social media users complained about a particular style of music which new artists use to try to break out on TikTok. Marked by a nostalgic melody and simple lyrics attempting to be relatable, the "mad at disney genre" has been criticized as unoriginal and inauthentic. Sung cited examples such as Ilese's "Mad at Disney" and Gayle's "ABCDEFU".^[9]

Songwriting credits

References