Q&A: BEL Embraces Growth in New Single “Fresh Start”
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY KIMBERLY KAPELA ☆
Photography Credit: SJ Spreng
A NEW CHAPTER — Rising LA-based artist BEL returns with her latest single, “Fresh Start”—a reflective track that encapsulates the bittersweet nature of life’s inevitable changes. Marking a new chapter in her artistic journey, “Fresh Start” explores the nuanced emotions that come with significant change: the initial sadness and reluctance to let go, met eventually with clarity, gratitude and optimism. Sonically, the track mirrors this emotional arc—balancing a sense of wistfulness with a hopeful, invigorating energy that feels as light and promising as its title suggests.
“I wrote it when I was moving out of the apartment I had been living in for three years,” BEL says. “I had so many memories attached to it, and I lived within five minutes of my best friends. I was about to move to a part of town further away from everything. I was really emotional about it, but my friends knew just how to cheer me up and show me the bright side of it.”
In her signature heartfelt style, BEL turns a personal story of letting go into a universal anthem of resilience and connection. “Fresh Start” embraces the unknown with open arms and an open heart and ultimately serves as a love letter to enduring friendship and a gentle reminder that even the most painful transitions can give way to growth and renewed perspective.
Photography Credit: SJ Spreng
LUNA: Thank you for talking to Luna. Our readers would love to get to know you and your music more. For any readers who aren’t familiar with you yet, what inspires your artistic style and sound?
BEL: I grew up listening to a lot of Fleetwood Mac and Joni Mitchell and a lot of classic singer-songwriters at the time because my mom would show me all these artists. I was obviously a big Beatles head too. I think that growing up, I was really into the pop and indie-pop of the time, like Vampire Weekend and Phoenix and bands like that. It's evolved as I've grown up, but I've always had those initial inspirations in my music.
LUNA: What is the ideal environment to experience your music? Is there a particular setting, mood, or time of day that enhances the listening experience?
BEL: I've made music that is really good for driving. I think it's a good spot, whether it's one of my more emotional songs, or something that's more uptempo, it's fun to listen with your windows down if you have a car, maybe on the subway or or public transit.
LUNA: You just released your newest single, “Fresh Start” and it feels deeply personal. Can you talk about the inspiration behind the track and the emotions you were working through when you wrote it?
BEL: I wrote the song about a year ago, right as I was moving out of the apartment I had shared for three years with my best friend from college. It was an emotional time—I had lived in a spot where I was within a five-minute radius of all my closest friends, and the thought of leaving that comfort was really hard, even though I knew the change would ultimately be good for me. The song became a way for me to mourn that transition while also expressing deep gratitude for the friends who supported me and helped me see the positives in it all.
Of course, I was being a little dramatic—it’s not like I was leaving the city entirely, just moving a bit farther away. But still, it felt like the end of a really special chapter. Sonically, I wanted the track to reflect that mix of nostalgia and growth. I experimented with new textures and layered in samples of real-life moments to give it a more intimate, lived-in feel. In a way, it marked the beginning of a new era for me creatively, where I started leaning into more experimental sounds.
LUNA: Moving out of your apartment sounds like it was a big life moment. How did the new environment change impact you artistically, if at all?
BEL: Definitely. I think it took me out into a new space to absorb a new environment. I'm always a very spongy person. I absorb a lot of my environment. Even when I'm touring and things like that, moving out of my usual habits always inspires me a lot to try new things in my music and try new lyrics that I might not be as daring to try.
LUNA: “Fresh Start” feels like a natural evolution in your sound. How would you describe where you're heading musically at this point in your career?
BEL: In this new sort of era of music, I wanted to have more of a return to some live instruments and really wanted to have really nice live drums and more experiments with sounds, guitars and textures. It's going into this new world that's a little bit dreamy and also has an organic feeling.
LUNA: When you’re writing new music, do you have any rituals or habits that help spark inspiration?
BEL: I really tried to do a lot of journaling, and I did The Artist's Way. I've done it a couple times and that always really helps me. If I'm getting into a funk and I feel like I'm not inspired enough, I'll return to that. I think one of the main through lines of The Artist's Way is getting in touch with your inner child and that's a huge one for me. I think having more playful things for my creative outlets and doing different art projects that don't necessarily align with music, but they're out there and help me get in touch with that side of my brain.
LUNA: If you could tell listeners one thing to keep in mind when they hear your upcoming music, what would it be?
BEL: Enjoy the moment and be present. And if something is difficult, it will pass.
LUNA: What kind of emotional space or sonic world did you hope to create for your listeners when they press play?
BEL: I want to create a world that people can escape to sonically, but also have lyrics that are relatable and help people feel understood, even if it's specific to my life, something that a lot of people hopefully have experienced and gained some sort of hope from it or understanding.
LUNA: How are you feeling in this current era of your career and what does the rest of the year look like that you would like to share with Luna?
BEL: I'm really excited. There's a lot of cool things coming this year, and this is just the start of it. No pun intended. There's going to be a lot more new music, a lot of shows and a lot of cool visuals that I'm working on. I'm excited to be able to keep putting that out there and people getting to see them more.
Photography Credit: SJ Spreng
