Red Alert

Meet Scarlet Tantrum, a young local musician who should be on your radar. The 21-year-old currently has seven singles out on all major streaming platforms and performs 2-5 times a week. 

Scarlet Tantrum, as you may have guessed, is a stage name, something Laura Garton decided she wanted early on. “It’s still me, but it’s the side of me I’m too scared to show sometimes,” Laura says. “Scarlet is confident, she doesn’t care what other people think.”

“I wanted a persona,” says Scarlet, “I also wanted to build more of a stage presence before I started putting out original music.” Having a stage name has allowed her to break out of her shell.

Laura taught herself to play the ukulele before getting her first guitar at 16. She began playing live shows in 2022, covering other artists before releasing her single “Brat” in 2023. The singer performs across N.C. and occasionally in Nashville. “Go big or go home. My dream is just to truly make a living off my music only,” she says. “I will play anything, even if it’s a contrast to my sound. I would say my style is somewhere in the dark alt-pop world.” Her biggest influences include powerhouses like Pat Benatar, Stevie Nicks and Lady Gaga, but she also loves to rock out to Alice in Chains. 

“I definitely write from the heart. A lot of the songs out right now involve mental health and loving yourself,” she says.

Her latest single, “Save Me From Myself,” is about realizing when you’re self sabotaging but feeling like you’re unable to run away from things you know are bad for you. “I want people to be able to hear my story through the song but mainly, I want them to feel heard,” she says.

You can expect to see two new singles from Scarlet Tantrum in the next few months leaning more into the dark pop world. Catch Scarlet Tantrum’s next big show at the House of Blues in Myrtle Beach on May 31; or see her lineup of local performances on Instagram.