I don’t want [listeners] to be sad, but I appreciate that that’s a part of emotion, and if I can help bring it out if it needs to be brought out, the… - Thao Nguyen

The lyrics are the most important part for me and I spend most of my time on the lyrics. When I’m in that process, I try to write every morning. I wake up and write and then just spend as much time as I can generating content and lyrics. Nothing happens until the music exists and then I’m writing to the music. So the other stuff is just sort of like collecting ideas and trying to frame different narratives and capture different emotions that I want to convey.

It’s been very freeing to get out the suspense stage and be able to play the songs live. I can’t be happier. I’m pretty surprised that with this kind of content and showing this kind of vulnerability, it’s really sweet to see how people have responded in kind with their own vulnerability. It’s a very humane interaction. I think that everyone has familial issues that they deal with, so it’s a common ground that’s immediately laid down. Even in interviews, music writers have been more forthcoming with their own personal encounters. It’s so different than the run-of-the-mill releasing a record and doing promo and whatever. The shows have been so sweet, and it’s very rewarding to be that emotional and that vulnerable in front of people.

The album was the creation of a space where all of the different lives I’ve led. My life has been really divided and this was a place where I could finally gather them all up and they would be in one place. So that my professional life and personal life exist together.