Once you get to know your strengths and weaknesses with the person, then you're off to the races. Today's goal is: Let's just write a really bad song.” Because sometimes that will get you going and you'll stop thinking about it being perfect, versus, “Can we be creative together in any capacity?” Even with these Zoom sessions where I'm working with a complete stranger, I'll say out loud, “The pressure's off. For me, writing songs is like this muscle to continue exercising. As a writer, does it help your process to work experiments out of your system? And I know there was a scrapped disco album before Dedicated. I know there was a scrapped album of folkier material after Kiss, before E I'm really liking funk sounds right now, so that's been really fun, but it's shocking when you hear what's coming from my little studio. Sometimes that means almost going too far with something. Just kind of experimenting.īut you do a lot of that, right? Historically, don't you enjoy feeling out where you want to go before you actually get there? So I am kind of writing a lot, but not necessarily landing on exactly what it is I want to share next. I know he trusts that we'll get it to the right place. Right now I would say it's been the most successful with my guitarist Tavish, who's based in Canada, just because we are really used to each other's flow and I don't feel self-conscious sending him a voice memo, even if it sounds crap. I'm always writing, chipping away at a couple ideas here and there. We're staring at each other like, "Can I call you back when we each have some ideas?" It's just a really awkward beginning process. You're trying to spark creativity with, sometimes, a complete stranger. The most awkward thing for me so far has been trying to do writing sessions over Zoom. Have you done a lot of writing over quarantine? Over Zoom, Jepsen opens up to ELLE about new music, her creative process in quarantine (think funk, then think funkier), and what it means to celebrate E “I thought it would feel uncomfortable, and almost indulgent, but it's turned out to just be this love fest of memories.” “This wasn't particularly my idea, but I feel like someone's throwing me a surprise birthday party and it's amazing,” Jepsen says with a laugh, sitting on her patio as calls her days after the album’s anniversary. Last month, Jepsen celebrated the five-year anniversary of the album with a new line of limited-edition merch (including a track list beach towel easily the best non-music offering from a pop star this year), a YouTube karaoke party (which turned out to be more of a lip-sync extravaganza), and the release of two Japanese-exclusive bonus tracks on streaming services worldwide. That’s the spirit I caught working with her on E “She’s a hard worker who’s just so down for the process. “She’s so keen to put out music, and she’s so prolific,” Rechtshaid says over the phone. In 2020, it remains one of the most beloved, exciting, and enjoyable records of the past 20 years.
#CARLY RAE JEPSEN PART OF YOUR WORLD CHORDS MANUAL#
In August 2015, an album released by a Canadian Idol runner-up with just one (albeit massive) hit under her belt produced a pop album so singular, it not only broke the rules-it rewrote the manual entirely.Ĭarly Rae Jepsen’s E