You’ve been releasing singles like “Raw” and “Down” over the last few years. What did this part of your music career teach you about yourself as an artist?
: This independent period taught me that I was capable of much more than I thought. When you’re independent, there are a lot of pluses – of course there’s creative freedom – but it’s also really hard. It’s hard not to have such a great infrastructure, finance and resources behind you.
When I signed a contract with a record company years ago, so many decisions were made for me that I wasn’t even aware of. Now that I am independent, I am involved in every decision and every stage of the creative process.
I think I showed myself that I am resilient and that I can truly get through anything. It helped me learn to trust myself and work harder than I thought I could.