Bad Religion: Zolita’s Wily, Wiccan Pop
Practicing what most pop stars only preach, Zolita shamelessly conveys her Wiccan beliefs and queer, feminine prowess in her musical artistry.
Bad Religion explores the relationship between music and spirituality, from Christianity and Islam to the paranormal and the occult.
Written by Heather Stewart
Photo courtesy of Ondine Vinao
From Stevie Nicks to Taylor Swift, magic tends to be a purely aesthetic choice for many femme music artists today. But singer-songwriter Zoë Montana Hoetzel, or Zolita, defies the status quo by making authentic witchy references in her art that reflect her personal spirituality. Hoetzel's upbringing in an atheist household led her to explore an assortment of different religions until she found Wicca, a religion consisting of witchcraft, nature worship, divinity, and self-sufficiency.
In a YouTube Q&A, Hoetzel explained: “To me, being a witch simply means being an empowered human that has agency over my own destiny.” When listening to Hoetzel’s music, the artist's witchcraft-heavy influences grow crystal clear. By pairing dark visuals and magic-adjacent lyrics with R&B and dark pop background tracks, Hoetzel embodies her deepest spiritual proclivities.
But the music artist hasn’t only come out of the broom closet — she also sings openly about being a lesbian. While many religious sects condemn homosexuality, the Wiccan religion is different. “I feel like queer people are so drawn to Wicca and witchcraft because it’s always been the alternative religion,” Hoetzel told Gay Times. “It puts the power in yourself, and it’s not historically been a religion that doesn’t like queer people.” It makes sense that the majority of Hoetzel’s music is a melting pot of her sexuality and witchcraft practices.
While Hoetzel doesn’t actually believe in Hell, she references the condemnation of her lesbian identity in her 2018 slowed electronic dance track, “Like Heaven.” She avows, “I know I’m headed for Hell, but it feels like heaven with you / (We’re burning up, we’re burning down),” as the steady beat grows lively. She also sings of religious romance in her mystical 2015 track, “Holy”: “Worship your body as you walk my way / You’re the only one who can make me pray / I fall at your feet, your breath defined / And underneath my skin’s an intrinsic shrine.” Hoetzel refers to her lover similar to how people speak about their religious saviors — minus the implied sexual undertones. This sultry lyrical opener is paired with echoing vocals and an ominous timbre. Later, the tempo quickens as she paints a picture of a religious confession gone awry using punchy and soulful vocal hymns: “I can fight but the devil wins / And I will fall like I sin new sins / Forgive me Father I am weak / And it’s not forgiveness that I seek.” This blatant refusal to repent is a direct rejection of the religions that commonly renounce queer love.
The Wiccan music artist isn’t the first performer to reference the concept of eternal Hell in regard to being queer, despite not believing in the afterlife. Lil Nas X parodied Hell and Satan in his controversial “MONTERO (Call Me By Your Name)” music video. For these queer artists, perhaps it's a means of reclaiming a concept that’s been used against them for centuries.
Hoetzel uses her platforms to tear down any misconceptions about her intersecting identities as a lesbian witch. Her YouTube channel is filled with shamelessly sapphic imagery, spell tutorials, and Wiccan Q&As. While there are many types of witches, Hoetzel is set on breaking the negative stigma placed on her Wiccan beliefs. In one video, she explains that being a witch doesn’t always mean dabbling with curses and black magic. “I personally do not do (this) because I think that it’s a waste of energy," Hotezel said. "I think that it is so much more productive to manifest things for yourself rather than bring harm to other people that you have problems with.”
A common belief in Wicca is the Rule of Three: Whatever energy is put out into the world by a person is returned to them three times over, which may explain Hoetzel’s reluctance to dabble in vengeful magic. Despite her personal beliefs toward the darker side of witchcraft, she does play a bit of make-believe with her empowering 2019 single, “Black Magic.” To somebody who crosses her friend, she asserts, “I’ma hypnotize you, hit you with that voodoo / Power of the full moon, won’t say I forgive you / I’ll hit you with that black magic,” over a twinkling electronic melody. Playful antics aside, Hoetzel's lyrics still lie closer to her personal beliefs than that of non-witch musicians who reference magic for purely aesthetic purposes.
Image courtesy of Zolita
In the aforementioned Q&A, Hoetzel gushes about using the ever-changing astrological placements of the new and full moon for spells and manifestations part of her Wiccan rituals. Her music mirrors this deeply rooted practice. In her enchanting 2018 single. “New You,” the snap-driven track introduces fleeting, impassioned keys but eventually tapers off into one synthesized note as Hoetzel whispers, “With the power of the new moon in me / I’ll forget who you used to be / Erase the hurt you brought my heart / And give you and I a different start.” The slowed pop ballad chronicles a story of being cheated on, but also the healing powers brought by a new lunar cycle.
Hoetzel's music videos also embody magic via intricate storylines and witchy imagery. She studied film at New York University, so naturally she plays a role in directing her visuals, treating them like high art. The video for the high-energy Evil Angel track, “Bedspell,'' oscillates between a steamy sapphic bedroom session and dance breaks performed in front of mosaic church windows. Meanwhile, the storyline puts the musician on the other side of witchcraft. After going on a date with another witch in a gothic mansion, Hoetzel finds herself under an inescapable, lustful love spell. The storyline reflects the sexually suggestive lyrics of the track: “I’m under your bedspell / I can’t fight but I don’t wanna / And I won’t tell anybody how I fall / When I get off tonight I know that I’ll be under you in this bedspell / You can break the bed just don’t break the bedspell.”
Another one of Hoetzel’s complex music videos, this one for the aforementioned “Holy,” opens with the singer standing in a circle of girls enrolled at a schoolhouse run by men. It’s soon revealed that there’s a lesbian relationship and a feminist cult unfolding in the shadows of the institution. After the singer is caught for her rebellious pursuits, she’s hanged by the co-patriarch of the schoolhouse while her lover watches in tears. The video eerily parallels the happenings at the Salem witch trials, where 14 women were hanged after being accused of witchcraft.
The video for the politically rebellious “Fight Like a Girl” revolves around an all-girl coven. In Wicca, the divine feminine, or Goddess, takes precedence. This is one of the reasons why the majority of Wiccan witches are women, and possibly why Zolita chose to incorporate Wiccan imagery into her feminist music video. Dressed in red and gathered around a circle of lit candles, the ladies from the “Fight Like a Girl” music video perform a ritual of sorts. Hoetzel's chants of common feminist sentiments hang in the background: “A revolution’s waking up in my head / You wanna listen what a real girl said / It’s a woman’s world.” Meanwhile, the video progresses to show a diverse array of women in their power. Hoetzel then goes on to reference Kali, a Wiccan Goddess who has been adopted as a mascot of women empowerment: “Boy I’ll make you see / I got the power of Kali in me / Everybody is about to believe / It’s a woman’s world.” All the women from the video gather in celebration as Hoetzel throws a final lyrical punch at then-President Donald Trump: “My body my choice, My rights and my voice / (Can’t grab me by the).”
It’s common today for feminists to adorn themselves with witchy references and aesthetics despite not following the practices. That’s why Hoetzel’s witchy feminism brings more authenticity and depth to popular music. Her lyrical references and video storylines stem from her personal spiritual beliefs rather than shallow nods to a practice some music artists aren’t familiar with.
Historically, witches haven’t been on the good side of the United States government (think back to the Salem witch trials). This is due to the majority of Americans practicing Protestant Christianity, although it's not the only religion with negative views on witchcraft. Leviticus 20:27, a verse from an Old Testament Bible book of law, reads, “A man or a woman who is a medium or a necromancer shall surely be put to death. They shall be stoned with stones; their blood shall be upon them.” It’s no wonder Christians who view the Bible as their creator’s infallible commandments are so disapproving of today’s practicing witches.
But Zolita isn’t scared to make dissenting social, political, or religious statements in her art. She brings real witchcraft to mainstream pop music and will hopefully add a level of realism to the performative aspects of the genre — as it relates to witchcraft, anyhow. While there are Wiccans and witches of other religions that use witchcraft in more mainstream practices often labeled as 'trendy,' it’s important for music artists and audiences (yes, even those who believe witchcraft is an abomination according to ancient religious texts) to remember that these are real religions and rituals worthy of respect.