Q&A: NERIAH on her Next Chapter, Girl Power, and ‘Salt in the Wound’
INTERVIEW
INTERVIEW
☆ BY KATHERINE CHUNG ☆
NERIAH IS A FORCE TO BE RECKONED WITH—As she enters her sophomore era, the gloomy feeling that her music gives off does not represent who she is as an artist. While pain and heartbreak live with her forever, she recognizes that letting go of broken relationships, people that don’t connect with you and heartbreak are moments that will make us feel better emotionally in the long run.
In her latest single, “Salt in the Wound,” she explores the idea that this phrase is not only a metaphor for making a horrible situation even worse; the ‘salt’ represents parts of who we are and who we have become. Meaning, the pain was worth it; she became stronger, more knowledgeable about what she wants from her life and art.
NERIAH’s excitement and energy for this new album is absolutely over the moon. Proving that she is not feeling the iconic sophomore slump that many artists face. “I found a lot of freedom and confidence in the song, and being able to sing it. Because there are things I would never tell a specific person, and having the metaphor as a song felt so empowering,” she says.
We sat down with NERIAH to chat all about: self-confidence, the music video and the color blue.
LUNA: I'd love to go back to the beginning of your journey. Do you have any female aspirations from the early 2000s?
NERIAH: I love Julia Michaels. She is my favorite person ever. Adele used to be my favorite artist. I loved Colbie Caillat, and Selena Gomez was my first concert.
LUNA: Was there a specific sophomore album that made you stop and think, “I can actually do this?”
NERIAH: That’s such a great question. I absolutely love Sabrina Carpenter. I love all of her music.
LUNA: This new project feels much darker and more melancholic than your debut. Do you think dark and gloomy TV shows and films set the mood for this single?
NERIAH: In terms of media and TV shows, I think it is so nice to see media that feels that [melancholic] vibe. Because it, 1) makes people feel not alone and 2) validates people’s feelings when they see themselves on screen even if it's in another world.
LUNAH: Speaking of feeling sad and stressed in a world full of relentless bad news, are you feeling the weight of that sophomore-album pressure?
NERIAH: For the first time in my life, no. I am so proud of what I have been making. I spent so much time and took some time off to really know what I wanted to say. It’s been resonating with everyone. I think that it is so genuine to me. I was scared to start the album. Because as a sophomore album, sophomore artist, independent artist, and woman in the industry, we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to make everything look perfect. Are we good enough? Is this good enough? Does this represent who we are?
Having gone through those feelings while writing this album made me realize that, yes, you are. This is what you want to say; people want to hear it.
LUNA: While your discography is known for relationship songs and feminist powerhouse anthems, your earlier work also explores the complex, often messy nature of female friendships—almost evoking themes from Mean Girls. Growing up, did any iconic chick flicks or feminist characters shape how you viewed those dynamics in your work?
NERIAH: For sure! I am inspired by so much. All of those rom-coms are such an inspiration. Those are my favorite kinds of movies. So I believe in being able to watch those. Being able to see the pivotal moments as a woman growing up, how they change our lives, and having people to look up to. I believe that being 100 percent able to be feminist-forward with it, empowering us, and the ability to go through a breakup and realize, “Hey, we are not always the problem. Then sometimes we are.” It's the idea of being able to celebrate together as females.
I draw inspiration from a lot of media and everything I see before we shoot anything. Everything comes from something. If I am watching a TV show or watching a movie, or listening to a song, I am like: “Oh my gosh, that is so cool!” It is so amazing to be inspired by that and say: “How can I make that myself, or what does this movie make me feel? Or how can I make someone else feel that way through my song?”
LUNA: I love that. Before we talk more about multimedia and video content, I want to dive into this new single that marks the beginning of a new era. Where did you first learn about the phrase “Salt in the Wound”?
NERIAH: “Salt in the Wound” was a title that I had in my notes app for a long time. I forgot where I heard it. It might have been from someone talking to me when I was having a different time with someone else. I was like: “Why am I pretending to like this person? This person does not make me feel good.”
A large part of my healing journey was realizing I have to be careful about who I surround myself with because they take away my energy, and some people you have to realize they cannot be in your life. That is okay. When they do you wrong, I am such a people pleaser. I am like, I can’t do this anymore. They don’t deserve to be in my life anymore.
I also see it as a metaphor of, “Oh, you think I have been mean now? I have been so nice to you, just wait until you see how I feel!” Obviously, not through actions, but more through anger and being upset.
LUNA: Would you say nostalgia and childhood act as a bridge to the heartbreak, emotional pain, and angst you sing about from your past?
NERIAH: 100 percent. The first song I ever wrote was when I was five, when my parents got divorced. I have been through several divorces. For me, it was always this feeling of something I did not have as a child. It stuck with me a lot and carried into my life.
Even now, I am a relationship person because, growing up, you never know what love that makes sense looks like, or you never see that. I never remember my parents in the same house. It affects you as a kid, which is why I have been so relationship-focused. I have been in a relationship for as long as I can remember. It has always been my end goal.
With music, I believe that relationships are my whole life. Whether it is my friends, people I meet, a partner, or family, whoever it is. It’s a goal I strive to have: to have that perfect relationship. I never had it as a child. I believe it carries naturally into everything I create.
LUNA: I noticed that in the lyrics, you do a countdown “3… 2.. 1…” in the song; it perfectly ties into what you mentioned: divorce breakups, friend breakups. You never see it coming, then boom! It hits you all at once.
NERIAH: Exactly!
LUNA: That ending scene in the music video where you pour liquid all over your face totally gave me Carrie vibes! Was that a deliberate nod to the movie, or did it just tie into the lyrics? What else can you tell us about the music video?
NERIAH: It is funny because when we were looking at the music video, we did not have a specific topic that was a nod to that. We were looking at lots of pop culture movies and films. It was one of those shots that made it in. There is such a resemblance now that you say that, because I love that movie!
I forgot about when we came up with the idea to shoot in the bathroom. I was more about seeing what works and trying this or that. We were shooting on 16-millimeter film and wanted to get more film.
I am happy with how it turned out. I believe that the music video is one of my favorite videos I have ever done. It brings a different world to the song that my fans can see. My fans are called “The Noodles.” They are little spies when it comes to everything because I am obsessed with noodles.
In the music video, each doll represents a different version of myself. I painted some of them pink and gave them different hairstyles so that viewers can recognize that sometimes the person we hate is a version of ourselves. I wanted to make it part of the storyline.
LUNA: I noticed something cool about the blues in your cover art. For “Kissing for Practice,” you used a muted, darker blue, while “Salt in the Wound” has a brighter, ocean-like blue. Was that color shift intentional, especially since the second project has such a moody vibe?
NERIAH: Yes! We are going through different shades of blue. It has been so much fun.
LUNA: Is that to evoke the more melancholy mood in the new era?
NERIAH: Yes! Oh, I am glad you brought this up. We wanted to go through it as emotions flowed. We wanted to go through the different hues of blue. I believe it was important because blue is the color of this album. When I was talking about the album color, I said, “There are shades that represent myself, because I turned into this sad emotional feeling. There are shades of blue that make me unhappy. Even shades that depict when I am not angry or upset. Being able to depict that, and see the difference that just because you are blue, it does not mean it is always a bad thing.
LUNA: On a happier note, will you be coming back to Washington, D.C to perform? And do you have any D.C history? Because you mentioned in your tour vlog that you love the food, people, atmosphere, and stage here.
NERIAH: That was my second time being in D.C. It was very fun, one of my favorite shows. Noodles, we are planning a tour. I hope to be back soon when the album is finished. We will be doing our second headline tour, which is going to be a blast. I genuinely love it so much. I do not have much history there yet. I would love to make more memories. When we came last, we were on the bikes, and we went everywhere.
The venue was amazing. It was one of my favorite stops on the tour. As a long-term goal, I want to travel around the entire world and visit every city if it were up to me.
