A Quick Chat with Takara

Sunshine, After All feels like a very personal record, shaped by grief, heartbreak and ultimately finding your way back to yourself. What was the emotional journey like for you while creating the album?

Honestly, I didn’t sit down and decide to make an album. Inspiration comes to me when I have a feeling that gets too loud to keep inside of myself. It’s like I seek out ways to transcribe these emotions into music so I can better hold them. When I finished “Soleil,” I had this little “oh… wait” moment… I realized I accidentally documented a healing process without intentionally doing so. Seems funny to say I process my emotions in Logic Pro, but sometimes that seems like an easier medium to outlet in then trying to express these with only words.

The album explores self love and independence in a really honest way. Was there a particular moment where you realised you were moving out of that period of grief and into a new chapter of your life?

As a sensitive girlie, I spend a long time feeling heartbroken post-loving--which can make it really hard to access gratitude and optimism. I would do the same walk in my favorite park in Los Angeles, and just cry and sit in sadness. But after a while I started noticing the sun on my face, and slowly that warmth started to change my perspective into “Oh. The world still has good things in it, just waiting for me to notice.” It was a small moment, but it really changed the way I saw my path forward. It’s funny that no matter how many times I go through heartache, it always feels like it will last forever. I see that as the power of love!

Your focus track ‘Woof’ tackles the idea of desire becoming possession and knowing when it's time to break free. What inspired the song, and why did it feel important to include it on this album?

A lot of this album is me narrating my own feelings and figuring out how to heal. Sometimes I reflect back on the journey of heartache, and find it so dramatic. I catch myself thinking, how could you have folded to someone who didn't deserve you? It’s like my internal monologue says “I saw you, and you were actually being ridiculous.” I wanted that moment on the album too, amongst the yearning and sadness. The part where you stop overthinking what YOU did wrong and call BS what it is.

Sonically, Sunshine, After All moves between alternative R&B, soul, world music and intimate pop. How did you approach creating the sound and world of the album, and did you find yourself experimenting in ways you hadn't before?

The album didn’t have a clear sound at first. When I first heard the production for “Soleil,” made by my collaborator Fred Rosa, it felt like the opening scene of a story. I didn’t have a clear vision of what the sound would be at first, instead I just wanted to dive into my feelings like reading a story, and let each song play out naturally. “Soleil” was actually one of the last songs I wrote but once I had it, Steve (my producer and studio musician) and I went back to the earlier tracks and added little sonic details that made each song feel like they lived in the same world.

You've built such a strong international audience independently, while also earning support from artists like Bebe Rexha and Jeremih, performing at SXSW London and touring the US. How has building your career independently shaped the artist you are today?

Being independent has made me really resourceful as a person and artist, but it’s also made me trust my own taste. When you’re making music, building the visuals, and figuring out how to get it in front of people yourself, you get very clear on what feels like you and what works and doesn’t work. More than anything though, being independent means you have to rely on your belief in yourself as a foundation for everything else. That drive to be myself, and to succeed as an independent artist--I can’t think of anyone else that wants that more than I do. Seeing my music reach people around the world, and getting to play places like SXSW London, has been surreal, and so fulfilling. It reminds me that the world I’ve been building from my laptop can travel a lot further than I can.

Now that Sunshine, After All is finally out in the world, what do you hope listeners take away from the album, and what does this new chapter look like for Takara moving forward?

I’m so proud of this album, and I can also hear all the ways I can grow. That’s exciting to me. I hope listeners take away the motivation to continue becoming and continue expressing.