Exclusive Interview: Rachel Grae Talks New Music, Lollapalooza, and Pop Music with a Purpose
- Abby Anderson
- May 13
- 4 min read
Updated: May 13
At the front of the movement of pop music that doubles as a therapy session? Rachel Grae. The pop star hails from New York City, and after chalking up hundreds of millions of streams with her debut album, Journal No. 1, last year, she's looking to the future with even more ambition. On the precipice of the release of her newest single (and first since she was announced as a performer at Lollapalooza this summer), "Raised by a Woman," Rachel joined us to talk about drawing inspiration from ballad-pop stars like Adele and Sam Smith, the humanity behind her writing process, and sharing her "era of self love" through her new music.
Despite being just hours away from the release of new music, Rachel is nothing but cool and confident, hopping on our call dressed in the exact NYC-business woman-chic aesthetic of the visuals for "Raised by a Woman" in a plaid blazer jacket and gold hoops. She laughs and introduces herself: "I'm Rachel. I make songs that can make you cry or laugh or anything in between."
Rachel makes it very clear from the beginning that she sees music as a therapeutic vessel, and always has. "I've been singing my entire life. The reasoning behind why I started was, for forever, I was very into psychology. I always wanted to help people." She posted her first cover at ten years old, and has only grown more in love with the humanity of music since. "I remember I found therapy through, like, Adele, Sam Smith, all the big ballad singers that I love, so that definitely set a tone for me to start writing my big ballad songs when I was first starting off. And once I started writing music, that's when I realized that I could [help people] through my songs. Then from there, it just never stopped, and I started writing every day for the rest of my life."
Her mission to connect with people through music has been one that's led to a stunning level of success, with Rachel seeing her millions of fans more as friends who are sharing in this journey with her. "I think their vulnerability inspires me to become more vulnerable. It's obviously scary to share your own stories, but I've realized slowly that once my story is out there, it's not about me anymore. It's always my goal just to give somebody a voice that doesn't know how to voice it or doesn't want to voice it, so to see the way people connect and connect their own stories has definitely helped me become consistently vulnerable in everything I release. It's equally as therapeutic to me, honestly. It makes me feel way less alone in any situation, just knowing that there's somebody else out there who feels the same way." Before releasing her (incredibly ambitious 22-track) debut album last year, Rachel played her first shows overseas, where she got to see the power of her words come to fruition: "I met this guy who had my song 'Outsider' tattooed on his knee. It was one of those songs that really helped him get through things, which is the nicest thing I could ever hear about my songs."
"If I feel like I'm in a world where I don't want to cry on the mic at the moment, I'm not going to. I feel like I'm in an era of finding self-love and just enjoying life, and I hope that comes through with the music." - Rachel Grae
The plan for Rachel's live performances this year also includes another milestone: her festival debut at Chicago's Lollapalooza. "It's always been a dream to play those festivals, so it's really cool to cross one off. I’m just excited to have fun. I'm excited to share the new music. I'm excited to meet the people who are going. Just to be surrounded by people that love music and want to hear artists and just to collaborate with other people is really cool." Without missing a beat, Rachel names the artist she's most excited to see: "Doechii. I cannot wait."
After the hint that "Raised by a Woman" may not be the only new music she's planning on playing at Lollapalooza, the question begs to be asked about a sophomore album being on the horizon for later this year. When asked, Rachel lights up with a smile and laughs. "Maybe? I may be working on something." While her debut project was more diaristic, ballad-pop, the new single, "Raised by a Woman," sets the tone for the new direction Rachel is taking with her music. "I feel like that song is very much about empowerment and leaving the bad things behind and moving on, knowing that there's better out there, and just setting your standards higher than they are. So there's a bunch of songs about grabbing your power back that will be out, and I'm very excited to share those as anthems for people to leave their terrible relationships and find better," she says with a laugh.
When asked if there was anything that inspired her to embrace this bigger, pop sound in her new music, her answer is simple: "Yeah. I'm happier." That joy isn't one-sided, and it comes from that place of letting her music be her therapy. "It's also performing. I'm just trying to be authentic through exactly how I feel. And if I feel like I'm in a world where I don't want to cry on the mic at the moment, I'm not going to. There's always gonna be songs where I am. But, at the moment, I feel like I'm in an era of finding self-love and just enjoying life, and I hope that comes through with the music."
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