IF 6 WAS 9

What do Eddie Vedder, Iggy Pop, the Weeknd, Fiona Apple, Lady Gaga, Eminem, and Jimmy Page all have in common? According to numerologist, human design specialist, astrologer, and electropop artist Kaitlyn Kaerhart, they are all Life Path Number 1s, the sign of the creative pioneer. Not a term used in common parlance since back when Jimmy Page put a down payment on Aleister Crowley’s haunted Boleskine House in 1970 and stuck sigils on his white satin suit, Deep Purple’s Richie Blackmore invited friends over for monthly seances, and Dave Mustaine cast spells on bandmates and rivals and bragged about it.

Since then, Megadeth stopped playing “The Conjuring” because the song contained instructions for those hexes (Mustaine has blamed the curses he cast for his own string of bad luck and health crises), Page sold Boleskine House as soon as the ghosts became too unruly, and Blackmore got a Ouija board and stopped inviting nonbelievers to his soirees.

Since the ’90s, rock and metaphysics have gotten quieter and more pragmatic; a little less Year of the Beast—give or take a Father John Misty or Sully Erna or two—a little more wellness and self-care.

So, back to those Life Path Number Is: They’re ballsy, bold, brutally confident, and ambitious. They’re natural leaders and

innovators, and they’re used to getting their own way. Oh yeah, and they love the spotlight. A lot. Something Kaerhart knows about, since she is a Life Path Number 1 herself, as well as the best-selling author of You Are Cosmic Code.

“Before I wrote it, I thought I was the only one obsessed with numbers,” explains Kaerhart from her North Carolina home. Lissome and cool as an oyster, she looks like a missing Kardashian, with perfect white teeth, porcelain-white skin, and long blond hair. Her voice is an odd mix of Adam Levine and Lana Del Rey. “David Bowie was really into numerology. I read a biography on him a couple of years ago and he was so enamored with numbers, he would walk out on stage and say, This crowd really feels like a 4 right now!”’

It turns out there is a long tradition of artists who are numerological enthusiasts, from ’90s post-Britpop stars Kula Shaker—who would only work with people whose names began with the letter K, the 11th letter in the alphabet and the sign of the spiritual intuitive—to Beyonce and Jay-Z, who both have the number 4 tattooed on their hands (although both are Life Path 5s). John Lennon was obsessed with the number 9, as is Ariana Grande. You certainly can’t forget Bon Iver’s 2016 album 22: A Million based on the Master Number 22, the sign of the Master Builder. All 10 songs were titled with numbers and symbols, including the single “33 ‘GOD,’” which was released 33 days before the album and clocks in at three minutes and 33 seconds.

And Justin Vernon isn’t the only one.

“Okay, I record my songs according to numerological principles too,” confesses Kaerhart. “My song ‘Sunlight’ is 1:11 and ‘Voices’ is 3:33. I always use numerology to predict my release dates. 1 dropped two songs on 2/22/22. I find more auspicious events happen when numbers are repeated. Since that day was a great number for partnership and balance, I put out two songs.

“Also, if you listen to my music, you might think, ‘This is pretty pop,’ but I’m always working with frequencies and putting in codes, and I’m trying to align the music to specific times in order to unlock certain codes within people.” But, she cautions, there are certain frequencies that actually mess up our energetic field. “Kanye’s gone on record talking about how 808s affect our chakras! That’s why I won’t use them.” And look how that turned out.

While eschewing those nasty, thumping 808s, the witchy chanteuse has an even better trick: using personal year

cycles, a tool that lets you hack your life and plot optimal days, months, and years based on what numerological phase you’re in, according to your birthdate. A little like astrology, crop rotation, or animal migration, but more reliable—and way more specific to the user.

“Before 1 did that, I was flat broke, I had just broken up with someone, and I was basically homeless. Once I started paying attention to those cycles, my whole world opened up. If you’re in a year of love—a 5 year—you can’t just sit on your couch and eat Ho Hos and chips and think the perfect guy is going to turn up in your living room. I just had to show up and embody the energy of my personal year.

“Within two years I had a best-selling book and went from being the guitarist in a band to getting a record deal as a solo performer. For the past year I have been releasing a single every six weeks because I am paying attention to the numbers. They just don’t lie.”

So if numbers don’t lie, what do they say? Always try to release music in September. “It’s the peak of the year cycle for everyone.” Fortunately, Billboard agrees with her.

Careful, though, fledgling numerologists: Pretty soon you’ll find yourself adding up the numbers on the license plate in front of you at the stoplight (uh-oh, a 9! Completion and endings. It could all be over, better tighten the seat belt), the digits of your boss’ phone (yeah! It adds up to an 8. Rewards, windfalls, and recognition. I really am getting that raise), or exactly how many snow peas you got with your filet mignon at Ruth’s Chris Steak House (it’s a 7, the indicator of spirituality and looking inward. I better download the Calm app, send this filet back, and order the branzino). Or how many words are in this article! All 981 of them. A 9! Signifying endings.