“WINDOWS (& SF CHRONICLE FEATURE)”

AUGUST 2025

Lovelies,

There are moments that stay with us forever. 

In some cases it's clear why. Something massive took place.

But sometimes it's like, what? THAT moment? I barely noticed it WHILE it was happening!

Last night I realized I've been carrying such a moment for quite some time. It came to me like this: I opened my bedroom window and let in the sounds of ever-active Claremont Avenue. And suddenly I remembered twenty years ago, midnight, lying in a West Berkeley bed with a love, listening to sounds off the street mixing with whatever we were spinning — David Gray or Sade I assume. I remembered I felt open like the window.

And I thought, now why is THAT moment hitting me with all the power of a formative event? 

Ah but it was a formative event.

I realize now, not only is it a trope of my life as a lover, it's a trope of my life as an artist. I am wildly open. No really, I took that NEO personality inventory and I'm 99% open. If it's in this world, I'm inviting it in. (To whatever extent I'm good at creating, I believe this is why.) But also, I am wildly sensitive. To let literally anything in is catastrophically destabilizing. (To whatever extent I'm good at creating, I believe this, also, is why.)

So picture me, my psyche an open window, closing all the windows. 

I can only imagine this is a balance required of many artists. How do we let ourselves be as open as our work commands and also support our sensitivity to survive it?

It must be this: There is defiance amidst openness that guides my best studio days. There is defiance amidst openness that guides my best song lyrics. 

Listening to the sounds off the street last night, I connected to every moment of my life where my openness and sensitivity held hands. And I relaxed in a way I haven't since the fire.

With all my love,

Rachel

I'm not the only one writing about my creative life this month! This week Andrew Gilbert submitted a positively beautiful feature about me to the San Francisco Chronicle — detailing how collaborating with Narada Michael Walden, producing twelve albums in three years, and coaching songwriters around the world led me to develop an app for creativity.

What a surreal thrill to experience my journey again through his eyes. You know someone is a great writer when they teach you about yourself! Shout out, too, to the wonderful photographer, Yoshi James, who did three amazing photo shoots to make sure she captured everything.

It was a gorgeous studio day with brilliant young artist Mira Multari. All summer I've felt awash with gratitude for this life of producing. It's like every session I feel more in sync with both my artists and my ability to serve their songs. This session was particularly buzzy because Mira's songs called for new things — her powerful vocals wanted a whole lotta space, and her sweet sensitivity wanted a whole lotta agro-fabulous (and some gentle-fabulous). As per usual it was all joy to work with Daniel Fabricant, Jason Slota, Max Cowan, Gabriel Shepard, and Karishma Kumar. (And the ghost of DePrato future!) I can't wait for you to hear this super cool thing we're making.

“ROMANCING NOTHING”

JULY 2025

Lovelies,

I've been on autopilot lately.

By lately I mean for a year.

I all but cry to disclose this. I value the examined life. The inhabited life. The RADICALLY LIVED life.

And yet for quite a while I've witnessed my life only as it recedes in the rearview mirror.

What on earth has befallen Our Lady of Introspection!

I think this:

Surviving a fire is many things. And it turns out one of them is SOCIAL! You would not BELIEVE how social surviving a fire is! You talk constantly to everyone. You make new friends. You live with friends. You recalibrate literally all of your relationships.

And:

Releasing an app is many things. And it turns out one of them is SOCIAL! You would not BELIEVE how social releasing an app is! You interview everyone. You meet artists and app developers and (god help me) marketing consultants. You have five meetings a day.

Our Lady of Introspection has been living a life outside of herself, and her internal life is overgrown with weeds.

But also this: Both the fire and the app changed me. And my old methods for tending myself -- DNRS, EFT -- have proven to no longer apply.

But all is not lost: Today I caught a lead.

I took the day off. Like WAY off. Like misanthropic off. I let my eyes go blurry and my mind go dizzy. I felt sad. I felt excited. I felt extremely tired. I had my first truly new ideas in weeks.

So until I'm graced with some new multi-lettered modality, I'm going with nothing. I'm going to romance nothing like it's the hottest girl at the bar. 

My plan is to do nothing until I witness myself, in the present tense, integrating the last year of my life.

With all my love,

Rachel

In other news, June was a fantastic return to producing. I began projects with pop heroine Frankie Bengtson (I mean she's truly extraordinary, watch this space, etc.) AND literary folk success story David Hobbes (our first outing, his debut album Searching for a Home, is at over 150K streams on Spotify alone).

I love my team: James DePrato (guitar), Jason Slota (drums), Daniel Fabricant (bass), Gabriel Shepard (engineer).

And I love, even beyond my impressive capacity for gratitude, this life where my job is to make music sound great. I told you last month that returning to my songs didn't feel like a homecoming. Well this month returning to PRODUCING did.

You know the drill: no music for ages. But please enjoy this photo evidence. 

“SAME BUT DIFFERENT”

JUNE 2025

Lovelies,

For nineteen years my creative life consisted of writing, recording, and performing original songs. 

Then 2020 brought a deluge of fantastic and fantastical suggestions to do other things. Would I produce songwriters? Sure! I'd produce over a hundred songs in the first three years. Would I write for other artists? Sure! And my first placement would be for Journey. Would I build a creativity app? Sure! And that situation went live mere months ago.

I was so occupied by these new pursuits "my music" didn't stand a chance. But I was so fulfilled by these new pursuits I didn't miss it in the slightest.

If anything I felt an aversion to it.

"My music" bored me.

This is not uncommon. Artists are like whales through plankton. We're nourished only to the extent that we're moving.

This is all to say I made a skeptical return to "my music" this month. First, a production group in the UK asked to work up my song (more on this later). Second, I, myself, produced four of my songs.

I can't say it was a homecoming, because these last years my creative life has felt more like home than anything else I've tried. But there was something neat in it: To experience my new sensibilities in my old environment. 

And I'm very happy I'll get to share this part of me with you again.

Love,
Rachel