Just months before celebrating her 50th birthday and about to launch her new album, desAMORfosis, the Mexican artist spoke with El Nuevo Día from New York City.
On the other side of the screen, the Mexican singer Thalía appears with a wide smile and characteristic hair down to her waist. She is in New York, the city that she has chosen to talk about her new record production desAMORphosis, which emerged as part of the reflections she had in the middle of the pandemic.
Last year, the singer launched her second children's album, Viva Kids Volume 2, in which her children Sabrina (12 years old) and Mateo, (8 years old) collaborated, as a result of her relationship with businessman Tommy Mottola. But this new album -which comes out May 14- is the opposite of an album for boys and girls. It is a more adult work in which Thalía talks about the different stages of love accompanied by a diversity of Latin/urban rhythms and collaborators such as Maffio, Myke Towers, Mau y Ricky, Farina & Sofía Reyes and Banda MS.
The production, which has 14 songs, is very close to Valiente, an album that she released in 2018 and which, like this one, featured several guest artists. About this new album, the pandemic, social networks, her children and her life, we spoke with the artist, who longs to return to Puerto Rico in the near future to enjoy its beaches, its food and her people.
Hello Thalía. How good to greet you, even through this virtual window.
How wonderful this little screen that allows us to connect with our people and how wonderful to be here.
First of all, how are you feeling and how have you handled this pandemic?
It has been a process and we are all dealing with this vulnerability in the last year plus and the truth is that it has been like an internal leap yes or yes that we have had to take to reflect on how we have been leading our life and how we want it. In my case, it has helped me a lot at this time developing this album desAMORfosis because it was like that analyzing those heartbreaks, loves, which in one way or another have been a metamorphosis to be who I am today. That is the story of this album with which I want to bring joy, love, light to all my people.
How was the process of making this album?
This album has the stamp of my discography which is the stamp of my voice, of the structure of my songs, it is a more pop stamp that is my backbone. But I have always liked to explore different genres throughout my discography, so this is definitely not far behind because I have been fortunate on this album to collaborate with great producers, great colleagues and singer-songwriters, like Tainy, like Trooko, Icon, Edgar Barrera, Elena Rose, Jhay Cortés, so many people who have been part of this album, who have given me a piece of their heart and made me happy with these songs.
Why desAMORfosis?
The album presents 14 songs that tell the process of love that is the meeting, falling in love, the skin, the fall of the blindfold when you realize that perhaps it was not what you imagined, the lack of love, the trying once more. All that is the process of love until you understand that love has to start with you, that the most important thing is self-love. So, it's that perfect circle in 14 songs where you talk about heartbreak, love, it's desamorfosis.
How has your musical metamorphosis been in the past decade?
Always learning, always creating, striving to do something different, where I validate my emotions, my way of seeing life. Throughout my discography I have explored many facets of myself and I have realized that I am a person who has a good sense of humor and that I can talk about love, I can talk about irreverent things or taboo subjects, or sex, about things romantic, that is, I have a fusion of different personalities in one that make me up and today I feel super free to say and do whatever I want and I really value staying here with the love of my audience.
And doing what you want has been given to you by life experience.
Yes. Also, I think it is so important to be authentic, to be yourself and to respect that personality. In my case, there were always people who tried to block me, who tried to change me, who tried to make me think differently, but always my personality prevailed, I would go out and fight and fight for my ideas. I always had that from a very young age and today it has been amplified, it's like I did not care of what they think of me. That's me and that's it.
Although we have not yet come out of the pandemic, are you thinking of starting to organize your musical tour or any presentation?
I haven't really thought about that because there is a long way to go and every day it's like you face a new mutation of this and it's like a story that has not yet been grasped. So the more we are protecting ourselves, taking care of ourselves, protecting others, this can find a better way. For now, these digital platforms and everything that has been opened for us in the industry through digital platforms, I think it has been and is a great tool to continue communicating with our public.
Speaking of social media and these digital platforms, how has social media contributed to your career?
Love it! I've always been like "techy", very technological, and I've always liked it. From www.thalia.com, where I took my selfie with my VHS camera, all that file is there, so, for me everything that has been social networks was like passing like butter from something that I like in something more practical. And suddenly I make a video for YouTube, a story for Instagram, I communicate on Twitter and suddenly I go to FB and do a miniseries. So, I think that has made it easier for me, one, to keep in touch with my entire fan base who are still there supporting me and I thank them because they are the ones who always drive me, and two, those who are discovering me from the new generations, those who say the TikToker Thalía or the influencer, or Instragrammer, YouTuber, and suddenly they find that there is a Pandora box that opens and Thalía comes out with everything behind it. And I love that.
How do your children react to their influencer mom?
They are surprised. Suddenly they meet mom and they like it and excites them, but now, they don't like the mom and dad's realm at all, of the artist . They are more creators of animations, stories and scripts.
You haven't been seen acting for a long time, is that part of your past?
I love acting, it fascinates me, but I think I was overwhelmed, like stuffed, like when you eat a lot of the same thing that you don't want to eat anymore because it was like many people always on top of me. That if they comb your hair, that they fix you, that they put the microphone on you, that they are telling you, that you have to say, that you have to cry again, that you have to give someone a kiss, that a slap, that is, I stayed silvery and needed a break. Right now I feel like my embarrassment is dissolving, but it's waiting for an interesting script to arrive.
Despite the pandemic, last year was very productive for you, you released a children's album and also recorded several songs that appear on this album.
Within the pandemic I was very productive always trying to cheer people up. On top of being a singer, being an actress, being a businesswoman, I entertain. I am a person who likes to entertain in one way or another and for me that beginning of the pandemic was so heavy that it was a necessity for me to create, to distract people, to lift spirits.
Last week we celebrated Mother's Day, how did motherhood changed you?
It is the most beautiful thing that has happened to me, it is the most beautiful thing to have these two beings by my side in my life and in some way to be able to help them in their beginning, on their path, that has been a great blessing and a joy for me. Having them, seeing them, accompanying them, that they laugh, cry, get frustrated, that one can be there supporting them, that is a gift for me.
This year you celebrate your 50th birthday, how do you feel and how are you going to celebrate it?
I am very happy and excited because it seems to me that it is a gift of life. To be like this, vigorous and healthy, to be here, and creative and with the opportunity whenever the public gives me is a blessing and I am eager to celebrate my birthday. I stayed energetically in my 25 years, this is how I feel and this is how I think I will be until the end. I think I'm going to have that vitality. I think it's about living in gratitude.
When can we wait for you here?
It urges me to be there, to be able to get closer at some point, when possible. To be able to have some delicious cod out there that I love, some coquitos, enjoy that sea so delicious that it is like a tub that I enjoy very much. At some point we will see each other there.
