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Longing, desire, jealousy, resentment, and hope.
Carly Rae Jepsen’s brand of empowerment is unexpected: It is more about accepting your emotions and letting them show. It’s about openly being lovelorn, asking for a second chance, and committing to someone, instead of keeping a standoffish attitude some artists tend to sing under the guise of independence.
“I believe you can still be empowered and be in love. It doesn’t have to be one or the other. I think there’s no rules to that. I love the idea of being strong on my own, but I don’t think I’ll lose my strength by being with somebody,” Carly told members of the Philippine online press Sunday.
Carly is in Manila for a concert featuring her latest album tonight, Sep 14, at the Araneta Coliseum.
Just when the music world was ready to write her off as the “Call Me Maybe” one-hit wonder, Carly came up with E•MO•TION, an album that has been so critically-acclaimed that it’s already being declared as the best pop album of the year.
There is no sarcasm here. Carly’s E•MO•TION really, really, really has all the makings of a great record: depth and dimension, top-shelf collaborators, catchy hooks, and heart-on-sleeve songwriting.
Girl got lucky: Carly received a privilege not afforded to all musicians: that album was not rushed.
Back in 2012, when Carly released the album Kiss, she was capitalizing on the multi-platinum-selling breakout hit “Call Me Maybe”. At the time, all the other songs in the album failed to get the same spotlight as the viral pop song, so this time around, Carly took her sweet time and music is all the better for it.
“I’m lucky I had a team… who was willing to say ‘Take as long as you need and come back when it’s ready.’ It took me two-and-a-half years, but I felt like that was a gift, because if I released something earlier than that, it wouldn’t be what you hear today,” Carly said.
Jepsen took a pressure-free approach and allowed herself unlimited time and space to find the sound and feel that best represented her growth as an artist. She even agreed on a gig on Broadway to further reflect on her song process and musical direction. Carly made her Broadway debut as Cinderella in Rodgers & Hammerstein’s Cinderella in Feb 2014.
“Before Broadway, I sort of doing a writing circle, where you do a session every two days with new writers. For me, that’s not my favorite way to make music. I like to get with people who I have proven I have a good vibe with, and then spend a couple of weeks, maybe almost a month on one song until you get it right, and you really rework it,” Carly said.
“Broadway was a departure from this bubble of pop music I am in. It gave me time to reflect on why it wasn’t working (with the writing circle) and really be able to articulate to my team and everybody and say, ‘This is how I have been writing songs for forever, this is what works for me.’ When I came back from Cinderella, everyone was on board and I think it was really healthy for me,” she added.
And because it took the Canadian singer-songwriter more than two years to release E•MO•TION, Carly was able to churn out about 200 songs for it. Only 17 of those 200 songs made it to the final cut.
“I just knew the best songs would sort of cream, they would rise to the top. I must have written over 200. At the end of it, the 17 that you heard just ended up being my favorite ones,” she said.
This ear for quality was the product of intensive, and sometimes spontaneous, songwriting sessions with some of the biggest music producers in the world. She joined forces with Sia, Devonté Hynes, Ariel Rechtshaid (Haim, Madonna, Vampire Weekend), Mattman & Robin (Tove Lo, Taylor Swift), Greg Kurstin (Charli XCX, Katy Perry), and Carl Falk and Rami Yacoub (Ariana Grande, One Direction).
“I also felt a desire with this album to kind of color outside the lines and try some sort of collaborations… with some of these producers whose music I was loving, but wasn’t from the same world of pop as me. I think that’s a gift when you have two different artists from completely different places, you make something new, together,” she said.
After catching a Cyndi Lauper concert in Japan, Carly says she felt that ‘80s pop had a way of expressing emotions, which she wanted to explore in her own music. E•MO•TION, which gracefully captures both the joy and risk of following your heart, is heavily influenced by ’80s synths, melody, texture, and themes.
“When I was in Osaka, I got to see Cyndi Lauper play at a festival there. I was a huge fan of her writing. So if I could have a really big wish list, it would be to work on a song with her,” she shared.
With Carly’s catchy and carefree songs, it’s not surprising to catch the love bug one way or the other. But this pop star has some dating advice for all you lovesick people.
“In general, look for a kind person. I think that in my youth, I was always going for the bad boy. I realized as I got older, that it’s much more attractive to find someone with kindness,” Carly said.
