Natalia Lafourcade

28:10Que los dos miramos juntos, ay ay ay Que he sacado con los nombres, ay ay ay Estampados en el muro, ay ay ay Como cambia el calendario, ay ay ay Cambia todo en este mundo, ay, ay, ay

28:54Que he sacado con el irio, ay, ay, ay Que plantamos en el patio, ay, ay, ay No era uno el que plantaba. Ay, ay, ay. Eran dos enamorados. Ay, ay, ay. Hortelano, tu casa. No recuerdo. Ay, ay, ay.

29:27Something like that. I don't remember the lyrics. Espero que no me escuchen en Chile porque me van a colgar. Anyone listening, I feel like should look up the lyrics of that. It's the most beautiful song maybe ever. You know, one of the greatest. She has so many. But yeah, for me, I don't know. It was really beautiful to have this approach to those musics. And not so easy. Not so easy to sing, but I'm still learning. So going back and listening to that music and learning to play it and learning to sing it, It seems like that also, it changed your songwriting, maybe. Uh-huh. Yeah? Yeah, of course.

30:07I realized that when I listened to the last album that I made, and it's probably the most personal album that I have, and I think in every song there is very clear the influences that I have been able to explore through the years. There is this incredible composer from Venezuela. I love his music. His name is Simon Diaz. Maybe you know him. When I heard him the first time, I was like, this is incredible music. So magic and the metaphors through the lyrics. And he uses a lot nature as an inspiration. And for me, I feel so connected because the place I live, which is Veracruz. I love it so much because of the weather and the nature around the earth.

31:02So I was learning the very, very first song that I learned by him. This is...

31:37So, so beautiful. Yeah. And I can see how this music has impact then maybe a song like Pajarito Colibri, which is a song from my... That's one of my favorites. This is one of my favorites on the new album. Oh, my God. Pajarito colibrí, no tengas miedo de salir. Hoy el mundo quiere que despiertes para ser feliz. Cuando sientas que infinito el mundo se abre ante tus alas, dentro de tu pecho pierdas el aliento, pídele al cielo que te haga volar. Y si sientes vértigo en el vuelo, que se enciende el fuego en tu movimiento, pide al universo en tu ser entero dulce libertad.

32:59So it reminds me to those musics. How did you start that song? Hummingbird in English. The hummingbird. I was in this beautiful place that my friend Yael has in Veracruz. It was her mother's farm. And Rocio, I actually have a song that I wrote for Rocio de Todos los Campos. and this friend, she's not physically anymore here but she's part of my life and she's a very important person for what I do. She was an incredible artist and in this place I was recovering myself for something. I don't know what that was. I think we all have moments when you just feel like your heart is broken for things that happen in life, but then everything goes so fast and you don't get to really connect to when you feel there's pain that you need to see and pay attention to.

34:07So I was recovering myself from that and I decided to go there for a month. I went there with my friend, Alan, and we were trying to see if there was music coming or not. that was for another project that I was working on but he said like don't worry I'll be around you don't feel any pressure like I'll be around if you feel like you want to come and record we'll do it if not don't worry and then I was in the room one day and I remember that I was inside the room for many days not being able to do much just sleep or read or just be there. And I remember there was this hummingbird coming every day, like doing dust in the window.

34:56And I was like, how come a hummingbird could come to a window? Go to a tree. Like, don't come to the window or the door. Like, there's nothing here. But symbolically, I felt like this bird was calling to me. And it made me feel like it was the spirit of Rocio saying like, come on, go outside, go for a walk, or come on, there's life out there, like you're in the bed, please, like come out. So there was a day I was just like, okay, I think I'm going to go for a walk. And then I started like having morning walks into the forest. And then I just, this melody came to my mind. I was singing this and then I went to the room and I only had a jarana which is this instrument for Son Jarocho and I was playing on that instrument, the melody and it came like that but I didn't pay so much attention to this song maybe because the way I was feeling for me It was just a basic lyric.

36:09Everything is going to be fine. Hummingbird. I had that hummingbird in my mind, in my heart. So I didn't pay so much attention to the song until I was working with the producer of the album and I showed him this song. And he said, like, do you like this one? And I was like, well, not really so much as normal. I said, like, we need to record this song in the album. So that's why I love producers, because they help. Yeah. So that's how I came. And the producer on your newest record, De Todas Las Flores, is Adán Jodorowsky. That's right. Alejandro Jodorowsky, his son. Yeah. How did you become friends with him?

36:50When I was working the tribute to Agustín Lara years ago, I was asking Adán to come and sing one of the songs on the album. And then we became friends, very close. Very close to each other. We love each other a lot. And then for many years we were saying, like, let's collaborate. Let's do something together. And 2020, I realized I really needed to go into the studio and record my music. And I was asking him, would you be okay to be the producer? And he was like, of course. What made you think he was the one for this record? You know, it was just a feeling in my belly. I don't know. Sometimes I move from my belly feelings.

37:35from your belly to your mouth yeah so I just felt it because actually my managers were saying why Adán and I was like I mean he's my friend I had other albums that we were working Un Canto por México, Musas those were albums that made me connect a lot with traditional music from Mexico and Latino America. There were many people around those and it was good and I really enjoyed the process of those records. But I felt like I just want to stay with my friend and hang out with him and just to be silenced in the studio, nobody else. I ask everyone not to come, like the label, my husband, my managers.

38:23I was with Rocio, only the two of us, and the band with the producer, Adana, also the beautiful band that I had for this album. His band is incredible. I mean, Mark Ribot, who's played with everyone, including Tom Waits, and just incredible. We love him. Yeah. We're huge fans, right? Amazing. Especially if we play guitar. Yeah, yeah. Especially if we play. I mean, he's a madman of a guitarist. Just he's crazy. What was it like meeting him and playing with him? It was amazing. I mean, I just want my life to be like that all the time. You guys are like in Texas, too, right? Where were you in Texas?

39:02In Sonic Ranch, which is in El Paso, Texas, in the middle of the desert in Rancho de Nuez. It's beautiful there. And Tony Ranch has this amazing studio, many studios there. And then the producer was listening to the songs. It was one year. And also because of the pandemic, we were taking it very slow, no pressure. and I was sending the music and one day he was like, I think Mark Reed would come and record on your album. And I was like, that's really far from us. Like, how? How are we going to make this true? But Adan is really magic. He's like, let's call him. Let's just give a call. I can only imagine what Adan's like just based on his dad's films.

39:55I can only imagine that lineage. which is magical people. I know. You know, when I was mixing the album in Paris with Adan, then he invited me to Alejandro's house to just have a coffee. And I didn't want to ask for anything else but that, you know? Like it was normal Sunday, just let's have a coffee and cookies and talk. But then he was telling me, like, I'm going to read you tarot to you. And I was like. He's going to do your tarot? Okay, okay. he's got to be out of control in the best way they are the best it's really inspiring to be close to them and that was the reason I also wanted to work with Adan you know I wanted to be close to him and his magic and mystic I wanted to have that and then we have beautiful people in the band like not just Mark Rieber I mean Cyril on the drums Sebastian on the bass.

40:58Yeah. And your pianist came from your, it was like your dad's piano student or harpsichord student? Yeah. Is that true? Not really like that close. They became friends, really. The funniest thing is that Emiliano Dorantes is my neighbor, right? He lives very close from where I live, but I mean, in the middle of nowhere. Right. And then during the pandemic, there was a moment we all, everyone, right? Like, please, I want to see another human being. And we were doing this Wednesday of the week movies in the forest, in the jungle, you know, in the oven. Just set up some movies in the jungle? Yeah, so we put like a blanket or something like that.

41:42And we were doing the movies theater there. And then Emiliano was coming. and we became friends because of that, because we were chatting and then I was like, hey, would you come to the house and give me some piano lessons maybe because I am free, I have time. And then he was coming and then one day I was showing him some of the songs that I was writing and then he was trying to play those on the piano and I was like, he plays so beautifully. His playing is incredible on this record. He's genius and he's so... His sense of space on your... Sensitive, yeah. It's really amazing. And yeah, so he ended up recording the music on the album.

42:23And I remember Mark Reebok the first day. They had like this moment of musicians, you know, like Mark Reebok saying like, oh, you're playing this classical beautiful piece and that. And then Emiliano was saying like, no, I'm just writing this at the moment. I'm just playing this. I am improvising. And Mark was like, everyone was like, wow, this kid has something special. And then he was like, give me a note and I'm going to play a chord. And then you give me another note. And they were just giving crazy notes that will crash between each other. So to make it really difficult for him. But then he was doing like a whole area or something like that, like piece out of that.

43:09He was playing 10 minutes nonstop from what the notes that they were giving to him. Then Mark Ribbett and Sebastian. They were just like, okay, we're ready to go. There's not going to be any problem with this kid. Because he's like 20, right? He's 21 right now, I think. There's a lot of those magic moments in the process of the album, which I love. I think it's important to have that kind of connections. Yeah. It's beautiful that you cut it to tape too and not digital. Yeah. And also Adan came with that idea. I always wanted to record that way. Then I found out that for producers or engineers, sometimes it was like, okay, this is going to be more difficult.

43:58Yeah. And then I just didn't dream about it anymore. But with Adan, we're like, yes, let's do it. Let's try. Yeah. And no metronomes too, right? Like no click, no metronome. No metronomo, no click, no beat, but the heartbeat. It was the first time I was doing it this way. It was beautiful because Adan didn't want us to rehearse all that much the music. Actually, he asked me not to prepare any demo, which I didn't. I did like three, four demos of the songs. I wanted to have the brass section because I just went to see if this would work or not. But the other songs, he was playing that music from the message on my phone, which was right the moment when I wrote the song.

44:50And then from that, we were saying like, okay, this could be an intro. So you, Emiliano, can improvise something here that would be like close to this. and then here you mark you're gonna start here and then we were uh how do you say like making the construction of the arrangement at the moment while listening only my voice and the guitar like trying to grab the feelings you know so there were moments when we were really connecting and there were moments that were more like a mess like no this is not the right way no no no no Please take that distortion out of the guitar we were saying to Marguerite.

45:33They were like, wow, I like this. But then Adam was like, no, no, no, this is not the song for this. And then he was like, okay, okay, okay, I'm going to change. I mean, he has so many instruments around. And I don't know, we were just trying things and playing. I love to do that. And yeah, the songs and the music started to come, to show its own spirit. And we were like, OK, this was really beautiful. Like, let's live it like this. And the good thing was that Emiliano has a really good memory. He was the only one maybe that really know the chords and the harmonies of the song. So he was ready to be there for the other ones saying like, no, it's not this chord.

46:21let's go from this place to this place. But he was the guy in the room that had all that information because we were already playing the music in Veracruz. Yeah. So he was more like... Oh, he kind of knew it a bit more. Yeah. All those elements, I think, add up. The record sounds like so free and beautiful and it just goes so many different directions. There's just some beautiful arrangements and beautiful songs we play. Thank you. Thank you. Really appreciate it. Yeah. We have to pause for one last quick break, and then we'll be back with more from Natalia LaFourcade. In today's super competitive business environment, the edge goes to those who push harder, move faster, and level up every tool in their arsenal.

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49:17Try Claude for free at Claude.ai slash brokenrecord and see why the world's best problem solvers choose Claude as their thinking partner. Lexus is a company that believes in the importance of setting a standard, which I can appreciate as someone who holds themselves to lofty if not ridiculous standards, especially with the car I drive. The standard Lexus has set for themselves is to experience amazing. Lexus measures success by the feeling and emotions evoked in a driver, like exhilaration and joy. Amazing can only be achieved by knowing people on a deeper level. The standard of amazing results in a feeling in drivers that their car was built in anticipation of them.

49:55Machines that make you feel more human. Because a car that doesn't make you feel something is a car that stops short of amazing. Experience amazing at your Lexus dealer. we're back with the rest of my conversation with natalia la forcade there's not a lot of artists that if you listen to the first record through the most recent record and been doing it 24 years about they all get better you know and to where like this one's like the best one oh that's just an incredible feat yeah i think it's really hard to reinvent i don't know if that word exists in English. To explore what is new for your universe as a musician or songwriter or artist, human.

50:46I mean, it's a lot of search. And for me, this album is a master. Like it has thought means so many important things that I want to keep close, you know, even 10 years in the future, 20 years, like I don't want to forget the things that I've learned through this process, because I think it's very important to keep trying to do this work, you know, like this album made me sit down, even on the stage, like I felt like this album was saying, I don't want you to move during the concert. I just want you to play and sing and you will sit down. No theatrics. No, just bring it all from that point and be very calm.

51:38And everything, I was actually thinking about this interview right now. I think this could have happened one year ago or two when I was releasing the album, right? But things like this moment has happened. And this album has given to me beautiful moments, but it's like in the time of this album, not the time that I want. Your time. Not my time. And I found that beautiful because I've learned that not always you may have the control of what you're doing and the music and the way it flows. I'm so glad. Thank you so much for the album. It's beautiful, all the music. And I'm glad also it's being recognized.

52:19I mean, you're here because you're up for a Grammy Award for the album. And it's beautiful that it's getting the credit it deserves. Yeah. Yeah. I feel happy. I feel happy for that, you know. I mean, you're not thinking about this recognition while you're doing the thing, you know. But it was hard moments when we took the machine to Veracruz. That was crazy. You know, we took the machine to my studio once and then I got COVID. They had to take it back to Mexico City and then bring it back again to my studio. What did they bring? What machine? The tape machine. Oh, the tape machine. Yeah, they were taking the machine to my house.

53:03And everyone were there, the cordo, strings, everyone, but the machine wasn't good. It was damaged for a reason. And then it was two days of like, let's find this little piece that we needed to fix it. And I don't know, like there were funny moments like that in the recording process of the album. It's very, I don't know how to say it in English, it's very artisanal. It's like handmade when you try to record like that. I mean, I am not like the Beatles. They had so much money, they could buy 70 tapes or even more to record an album. But for us, it was just like 15 or maybe less, just 20 minutes for every track, 24 tracks.

53:55Would you record like this again? Of course. That's the way I want to record the most. I mean, it's okay. It depends on the project, I think. But I really loved it. Are you writing? Always? Not always. Recently, I've been writing. Last week, I was doing some music for a TV show that somebody asked, and I was writing a song that is called Cancionera. But not always, you know, for I am not very disciplined as a writer. Do you find it helpful to have an assignment? Well, I like it. You take your time. I mean, I like that you take your time. no you know there's moments yeah it could be months and I do nothing and then there's one day and I got inspired I think this moment in my life I feel very inspired but that doesn't happen always for me I hope we get more music then soon oh yeah me too me too me too I ask for that I ask the muses it's too good it's too good could you play one more song yeah Maybe Pasan los días Ah, okay Pasan los días Y sigo pensando En ti Pasan las horas No me logro desprender

55:31Es tan absurdo Imaginar Que nuestro amor no es suficiente para hacernos regresar Pasa la vida y sigo pensando que Teníamos todo para hacernos tanto bien Que la distancia no podría destruir Aquel espacio construido en la ilusión Dime cómo hago para respirar En este mundo tan vacío que queda en mí ¿Dónde ha quedado aquel encanto, aquel encanto entre los dos? Te lo suplico, no lo olvides, por favor

57:11pasar los días y sigo pensando en ti pasan las horas no me logro desprender Es tan absurdo imaginar Que nuestro amor no es suficiente para hacernos regresar Pasa la vida y sigo pensando que Teníamos todo, todo, todo para hacernos tanto bien Que la distancia no podría destruir Aquel espacio construido en la ilusión Solo quiero quererte, yo solo quiero abrazarte En este universo loco, mirarte crecer y en la distancia amarte Solo quiero quererte, yo solo quiero abrazarte En este universo loco, mirarte crecer y en la distancia amarte Solo quiero quererte, yo solo quiero abrazarte En este universo loco, mirarte crecer y en la distancia amarte Solo quiero quererte, yo solo quiero abrazarte En este universo loco, mirarte crecer Y en la distancia amar

59:24Amarte en la distancia

59:32Amarte

59:38I play it in a different tone. It's not this tone. It was gorgeous. It was gorgeous. It was gorgeous. It was beautiful. There it goes. Thank you so much. I appreciate taking the time. Thank you. Thank you so much. It's my pleasure. Thank you for having me. Of course. Hope we do it again. Maybe in Mexico. Yes, please. In Veracruz.

1:00:28Broken Record is produced and edited by Leah Rose with marketing help from Eric Sandler and Jordan McMillan. Our engineer is Ben Tolanay. Broken Record is a production of Pushkin Industries. If you love this show and others from Pushkin, consider subscribing to Pushkin Plus. Pushkin Plus is a podcast subscription that offers bonus content and ad-free listening for$4.99 a month. Look for Pushkin Plus on Apple Podcast subscriptions. And if you like this show, please remember to share, rate, and review us on your podcast app. Our theme music's by Kenny Beats. I'm Justin Richman.

1:01:08The more you learn about your favorite artists, the more you want to know. Claude helps you keep digging, finding new threads and rabbit holes to explore. Whether it's discovering deeper meaning behind a detail in an interview or figuring out the influence behind an artist's particular era, Claude thinks with you to find the next clue. If you can't get enough of the stories behind your favorite music and artists, Claude will help you discover new layers you didn't know existed. Try Claude for free at claude.ai slash brokenrecord. This is an ad by BetterHelp. We've all had that epic rideshare experience.

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1:02:21Lexus measures success by the feeling and emotions evoked in a driver, like exhilaration and joy. Amazing can only be achieved by knowing people on a deeper level. The standard of amazing results in a feeling in drivers that their car was built in anticipation of them. Machines that make you feel more human. Because a car that doesn't make you feel something is a car that stops short of amazing. Experience amazing at your Lexus dealer. This is an iHeart Podcast. fun music