While writing her latest LP, Rosalía spent months studying saints.
The Spanish superstar singer/songwriter opened up about the extensive research that went into Lux, her fourth studio full length that was released in November of last year.
Before recording the album, which features her singing in 14 languages alongside background vocals from the Escolania de Montserrat, one of Europe’s oldest boys’ choirs, the 33-year old musician spent a year researching and writing in near isolation.
Fifteen of the 18 songs were inspired by the stories of female saints and mystics, which is why she chose to sing in multiple languages. For example, to channel Saint Olga in Kyiv for her song ‘De Madrugá,’ she sang in Ukrainian, while ‘Berghain’ inspired by Saint Hildegard of Bingen, required her to sing in German.
About her process, Rosalía reflected on her fascination with the saints In a recent interview with Vogue, stating:
“So many of these saints were nuns, and I found it so amazing to learn about their lives, learn about how they would express themselves.” “They would have an experience of God, and they would explain it with words. Just speaking. It was another way of knowledge, no? Another way of understanding lo divino.”
Explaining that contemporary creative works often reference celebrities, the artist (born Rosalia Vila Tobella Vila Tobella) added “And I feel like nowadays a lot of people reference celebrities, and celebrities reference celebrities.” “I prefer to reference saints.”
Addressing her decision to wear a headpiece resembling a nun’s habit, designed by Maison Margiela, along with a white garment by Alainpaul that resembled a straitjacket, for the collection’s cover art, Rosalía said “I was trying to find an image that would symbolise feminine spirituality.” “To me, this was the one that could translate how this album sounds, what this album is about, where I’m singing from, and the inspiration behind it.”
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Author: Al Denté
Photo: Andrés Ibarra