Maria Isabel: “No Soy Para Ti”

Check out our exclusive interview with the artist below. 

Your new single, "No Soy Para Ti," is written and sung completely in Spanish. Can you tell us what it's about and what it means to you?

It's kind of just about learning the lesson that things don't last forever, but that's okay. People kind of come and go out of your life. And I think that's a situation I was in, and I think everyone around me was kind of expecting more low-key, maybe sadder music, even more than the first EP. But, I just kind of wanted to do something different with that. I think that I got myself through a lot during COVID, so it was meant to be about a breakup, but also I think just me coming into myself and realizing that I could get myself through things, without the help of others.

What was this whole music video process like working with Alfred Marroquín?

It was amazing. He's Puerto Rican and I'm Dominican. We're both from New York. We met to discuss the video and I swear, we talked about the video for five minutes and we were like, okay, we got this. We were just very much on the same page. He knows exactly what's going to work. As a songwriter, when you write something that's going to fit into a song and you can kind of hear the end result in your head. I feel like he feels the same way with music videos. Cause he just had all these ideas and everything went so well.

Can you walk us through what the process of making music is like for you? When are you most inspired to write?

Honestly that kind of changes every day. I do think it's a little harder for me out of quarantine, it's weird. At least with the first EP, I wasn't doing music full-time when I started writing that, so it was just whenever inspiration would strike. It's weird now cause I've been in quarantine for the last year and some change and now I'm making music full-time so it's a little odd to combine making it your job and waiting for inspiration to strike. I think generally mostly at night, and when I'm by myself in my room is usually when I'm thinking back on the day or whatever. And time to myself is when it's easiest to write.

I grew up in a Latino household, and I know that there are so many more poetic ways to say certain things in Spanish. It's just a completely different sound. I've noticed it's been making headways in mainstream music, singing in Spanish and English as well. I can kind of see the upward progression as opposed to when I was younger and it was my mom's music versus my music. What are your thoughts on the increasing representation? Do you think there needs to be more?

It's kind of funny and odd getting used to it because it's exactly like you said. Growing up, it's like music from two different places and not acknowledged in the same way in the US and it's so weird to see it happen now. Or like reggetón become fully mainstream, and people are like, oh my God, have you heard this song? And it's like the song that we grew up with. I'm grateful to be making music at a time when that is happening because I'm not thinking of writing in Spanish to take part in it, but I'm glad that there's a space for it now here in a bigger way. We definitely need a little bit more still.

I just wanted to say congrats on the announcements of festivals that you're going to be performing at. How are you feeling?

Very excited. My whole career thus far has been, at least with music out, has been during the pandemic. It was okay at the beginning because I was writing and releasing. And, now that I have my first full body of work out, it's been so strange to not be able to play it live. I can acknowledge that I've grown a lot in terms of my music, but also my fan base during the pandemic. But when you're at home and not playing to the crowd, it's so hard to gauge that and really understand that. So I'm just so excited to be in front of people and the fact that other people are excited keeps being a shock to me, but I'm just so excited.

What do you think has been the biggest highlight so far of your work and your music? When did you, as an artist, feel like, wow, I can do this. I'm really making it. And that my dreams that I've had are actually turning into reality?

The time I have felt the most, so far, was when my COLORS Performance dropped. It was amazing even before it came out, but then watching it come out and watching all the reception roll in. I find so many people for the first time through COLORS and I've watched so many people's COLORS on repeat. And then just seeing my face pop up on there and having people be like, oh my God, I'm so proud of her. She did COLORS.

Do you think that fashion plays a role in your music?

I think fashion plays a massive role in the sense of, that's a huge part of anything I'm doing in the music world. Even if I'm getting dressed to go to the studio or I have a shoot or I'm shooting a music video, clothing is always such a big part of that. It's about music, but my first thought is always, what am I going to wear?

Can you talk to us about your fashion inspo?

I mean, Rihanna, let's start there, like number one above all my queen. But I think everywhere, especially growing up in New York and just people watching all day. I think it's a combination of growing up in New York, but also growing up with 2000s and late 90s fashion, but being at an age where I couldn't wear any of that. Now it's just wearing everything I couldn't wear as a kid. One of my favorite parts of living in New York was sitting outside all day or sitting on the train or whatever. You're just watching a million people go by. And if I saw something I liked on somebody, I would write it down and then try to find something similar. 

I know that you're a really big mental health advocate. So what kind of advice would you give your fans who are struggling and what is the best piece of advice that you think that you've received?

I think the advice I would give is to primarily just try and keep in the front of your head that you're not alone and you're not the only one going through it. I feel like that's half the battle where mental illness or any issue with your mental health can feel so isolating. I think also this is a lot to communicate through a small piece of advice, but I just want everyone to understand how I hate the word normal, because what does that even mean? It happens to all of us or so many of us or at least someone. You truly are not alone.

Everyone should tell someone regardless of who it is, obviously that's loaded, finding a therapist can be hard, but I think just finding someone who you can reach out to is very important. Most important advice I've received, honestly, I think it's the same. The first person that I told that I was struggling, suggested I go to therapy and it doesn't seem like crazy advice in the sense of that feels like the logical next step, but talking to someone is just the most helpful thing you can do.

What's next for you and for your music?

So "No Soy Para Ti" and then hopefully another single before a second project which is crazy to say, because I feel like my first one just came out. A lot more new music and then hopefully, fingers crossed, if the world is on the right track then live shows.