ROSIE Unlocks New Era of Healing, Acceptance in '5 Songs for Healing'
“I am worthy of everything I desire,” says ROSIE as she affirms the healing work she’s done to prepare her for the next era of finding ways to express her confidence through music, following her acclaimed EP 5 Songs for Healing.
5 Songs for Healing is ROSIE’s most vulnerable release to date as she intimately chronicles her healing journey that she describes as a lifelong process and diving deep into her emotional depths. ROSIE’s love for affirmations and journaling is channeled through her songwriting process as she silences negative voices in her head and learns to be more empathetic towards her.
“5 Songs of Healing explored the five different forms of healing that I went through,” ROSIE says. “For me, the way I ground myself is through journaling these days and I could save my mind literally everywhere. There's always a journal at this point. I find that I have a very negative voice in my head that talks to me sometimes by default. I've been really trying to retrain that voice and be more kind to her.”
ROSIE’s wisdom-filled, catchy sophomore EP focuses on the healing process rather than grief. While ROSIE’s 2021 debut EP 20mg of Happiness focused on how others have made her feel, 5 Songs for Healing diaries ROSIE’s own emotions, resulting in a profound self-reflection that gives her music healing powers. From ROSIE’s body language in the artwork to the power behind her vocals, the 23-year-old is unapologetically open and resilient compared to the fragility that characterized her debut. With each song on the EP, ROSIE achieves more self-compassion and mends her broken heart.
“Creating 5 Songs For Healing was truly a healing experience for me,” ROSIE says. “This body of work represents the honest truth about the full range of emotions I felt while going through this process, and as each song was written, I learned something new about myself. I believe these last couple years have been some of the most difficult times the world has seen, and I hope that this project brings some solace and relief to those who are suffering and trying to get better.”
A collection of coming-of-age songs, 5 Songs For Healing details the stepping stones of ROSIE’s healing journey from her breakup. As the opening track, “Next Life,” begins, ROSIE sinks deep into traditional methods of self-care, from affirmations to meditation to journaling, only to find she was avoiding facing her feelings. Still, the escapism continues, daydreaming she’ll be better in her “next life,” as the production swells.
Then comes “Someone You Once Had,” – a slow burning track that bursts into a full-fledged pop banger. ROSIE comes above water after drowning in the grief of her breakup, realizing what she deserves.
“Startover” is an arena-filling plea to achieve closure. ROSIE acknowledges over booming bass drums and shimmering guitar chords that in order to heal, she has to leave her partner (and the person she’s become) behind.
But stopping communication isn’t always that easy, as documented in “I Should Just Go To Bed,” the highly-anticipated track to be released off 5 Songs For Healing. ROSIE lays each word thick with motion as she narrates the inner turmoil of wanting to text someone you shouldn’t. The relatability has connected with fans, with one teaser achieving 1.5 million TikTok views.
“‘I Should Just Go To Bed’ explores love versus logic, or heart versus head,” ROSIE says. “For me, this song was a huge representation of growth and healing because I heard what my gut was telling me to do, and I listened.”
Ending with “Potential,” this song stemmed from a groundbreaking moment of clarity during a session with ROSIE’s therapist: always wanting to see the best in people, ROSIE realized she fell for who her ex could be, opposed to who they truly were. The song takes surprising tempo and timbral changes during ROSIE’s own lyrical realizations: “When I fell I thought you were special / but I fell for your potential.”
[UNPUBLISHED]: Welcome back and thank you for talking to Unpublished Magazine again. Last time we talked about your single “Startover” and unlocking a new healed era for you. I would love to catch up and see how life has been treating you since the release?
[ROSIE]: There's been ups and downs, but the whole concept of “Startover” was discovering what parts of myself I knew it was time to let go of and what parts of myself it was time to explore more and that's exactly what I have been doing. Since releasing “Startover,” I've released an EP that is very much about healing and finding myself. It goes along with the theme perfectly. I've been feeling the full scope of emotion that comes with being a 23 year old musician.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Last time we interviewed we talked about what listeners can expect with your new era of music and you said it goes through the five stages of grief and looking inward for more of a you-centered era. How do you ground yourself or show yourself love even during the hardest times of acceptance before you go into the studio and record your experiences?
[ROSIE]: That's a great question. 20mg of Happiness explored the five stages of grief and then going into this next project, 5 Songs of Healing explored the five different forms of healing that I went through. For me, the way I ground myself is through journaling these days and I could save my mind literally everywhere. There's always a journal at this point. I find that I have a very negative voice in my head that talks to me sometimes by default. I've been really trying to retrain that voice and be more kind to her. I journal before I go on stage, before I have an interview, before I do a TV appearance, before I go into the session. Regardless of what it is, I try to just access that kind of voice. That's what I've been doing lately. I think it changes as I grow but right now that's it.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Your EP 5 Songs for Healing released and a huge congratulations is in order. What is your favorite song off the EP and why do you love it? Is there a certain lyric or message that you gravitate towards the most?
[ROSIE]: It says what it feels like but for me, “I Should Just Go To Bed” has been an interesting one because I underestimated how many people relate to that feeling of knowing when it's time to just close your eyes and go to bed. It's like the phrase ‘nothing good happens after 2am.’ When I wrote “I Should Just Go To Bed,” I was feeling very alone at what I was going through and feeling like I was the only one. Now to see it resonating with more people than I thought was even possible, it makes me feel like I'm on the right path and I'm doing the right thing as an artist.
[UNPUBLISHED]: What was the hardest song for you to write either lyrically or emotionally?
[ROSIE]: I would say “Potential” because it took me three tries and six months. So the first try. it was just me and my piano and I went through that experience and it didn't work. Then I brought the concept to good writers, and the first time it didn't quite go as planned and then I brought it in another time to my favorite co-writers on my birthday. It was on my birthday that we wrote the version of “Potential” that you hear today. Conceptually, it's about having this awakening and realization about myself that I'm really good at seeing people's potential and really bad at seeing them for who they really are in this current moment. That was a tough one. There were definitely a lot of tears shed during the process of creating it.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Do you think 5 Songs for Healing is your most vulnerable release to date and how does it feel to be putting such vulnerable work out into the world?
[ROSIE]: It absolutely is. I've been saying this a lot recently, but I find the quote I've been living by just in terms of songwriting, ‘if you're scared it's too honest, then it's probably just honest enough.’ Having that quote in my mind really helps me as I put out this music because I feel like I'm writing the things that are scary to me. Hopefully it's helping people in their scary emotions and what they're going through. That's how I process it because it is very scary putting out the songs, but I feel good in the fact that I released them and I feel good that people are relating.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Have you experimented or taken more risks either sonically or lyrically with 5 Songs for Healing from your last album release 20mg of Happiness?
[ROSIE]: Absolutely. I I believe being an artist is a journey in many ways, specifically sonically. I think that I have grown so much just in the way I sound, my vocal delivery in production and in writing. I think that 5 Songs For Healing is a really good jumping off point for where I'm headed next. I think it really puts me in that pop singer/songwriter dramatic and big live instruments.
[UNPUBLISHED]: You also just finished up your Healing Tour. How was that experience and how was the response from fans?
[ROSIE]: The Healing Tour was life changing to see people show up every night and know the lyrics and tell me their stories. Meeting them was a very relationship-strengthening experience, a very bonding experience for my fans and I, and for anyone out there who's trying to heal, including myself. I felt like we created a really cool space every night. We did 11 nights and got back home and now I'm just thinking about the next time I'm gonna go on tour.
[UNPUBLISHED]: Do you have any memorable or fun moments from the tour that you would like to share?
[ROSIE]: I have so many. On my first night of tour in Boston, I had this costume change at the end of my set right before my encore where I took off my regular shoes and put on these big red boots. The first night in Boston, my hands were so sweaty and I was so anxious about changing that I was unable to put the boots on because they're slip-on and they're really difficult. I actually just went out on stage with the boots and I was talking to everyone on stage. I was like ‘Hey guys, you know I had this plan to walk out and be in these boots but my hands are really sweaty and I didn't have enough time and y'all are cheering for an encore. So if it's okay, I'm just gonna sit down on stage right here and just put them on.’ It was such a ROSIE moment to me because I had this plan to do this thing and to have this persona and to walk out in these red heels and I did get to do it every other night. It felt really good that the first night I just sat there with my fans on the edge of the stage. We're just gonna put my shoes on together and then I'm gonna play “Never the 1.”
[UNPUBLISHED]: Previously we also talked about how your spirituality has played an immense role in your grounding techniques and the energy you go into the studio with, as well as positive affirmations and the power of that ritual. Do you have any healing affirmations that you would like to share that have helped you?
[ROSIE]: I wrote one down literally this morning because these are very much present in my life. ‘I am worthy of receiving everything I desire.’ I think a lot of artists feel the sense of imposter syndrome and it definitely is something I feel, so I try to remind myself on the daily that everything I desire is something I deserve and something that I am worthy of, which brings me to my next one, ‘keep busy while you wait for the miracle.’ Continuing to work hard at the goals that I want to achieve come into my life and not sitting stagnant as everything is happening and things are coming together.
[UNPUBLISHED]: How are you feeling in this current era of your career and what does the rest of the year look like for you that you would like to share with Unpublished?
[ROSIE]: I'm feeling the full range of emotions. I'm feeling really happy and sad. I'm feeling inspired. I'm feeling tired. I'm feeling positive. I'm feeling grateful. I'm feeling everything, which is perfect because now I have a lot to write about. In terms of this next era, I think I'll always be in my healing era. This next project and where I'm headed and what I'm focusing on this year, is finding ways to express my confidence through my music, which is something I have not always had something I'm starting to develop so that's what's in store for this year is hopefully some more tours but more than anything, creating this next project and coming from a new place of power and courage, which I think I have really yet to do.
