Jensen McRae reflects on life and love with new album 'I Don't Know How But They Found Me!' • Interview • DIY Magazine

“The year’s been off to a complicated start,” admits Jensen McRae, as she calls in from her Los Angeles home. Between the devastating effects of recent wildfires and chronic uncertainty of ongoing political turmoil, the Dead Oceans signee’s second album arrives at a challenging time. Although far from being the climate she’d hoped to unveil the project in, the release comes as a much-needed escape for the singer-songwriter. “I think having art and work is a wonderful distraction,” she says, before walking to her kitchen to make a glass of lemon water.

With an almost three-year break since her debut album, ‘Are You Happy Now?’, the new record finds Jensen in a new space both personally and artistically. “Anyone who’s experienced their 20s knows the difference between 24 and 27. I’ve changed so much,” she reflects. While her debut explored themes of mental health and identity with candour, the upcoming album ventures into previously unchartered territory, unpacking the aftermath of two back-to-back relationships.

“I definitely crack jokes about it, like, now I’m writing my heartbreak album, but I’m doing it in a unique and special way because everyone has done this,” she laughs. Titled ‘I Don’t Know How But They Found Me!’ (a recognisable line to anyone who’s a fan of the Back To The Future films), it finds her bringing her perspective to what can risk being clichéd subject matter. Expanding on her hesitancy to delve into heartbreak narratives, Jensen explains: “I think the job of songwriting is either to write about something that no one else has written about in a way that feels familiar and comforting, or to write about something that everyone has written about in a way that feels fresh.”

From the nostalgic glow of opener ‘The Rearranger’ to the sharp-witted indictments of ‘Savannah’, and lingering confessions on ‘Novelty’, the album sees Jensen reclaim the experiences that she once avoided. “Through songwriting and music I’m able to really control who I am and the story of what happened to me,” she reflects. It finds the artist on a journey of self-discovery as she shifts the focus from the relationships and people that once consumed her back to her own thoughts and emotions. “This album is about how I can get to the point that I am fascinated with myself again, in the same way that I was fascinated with these people,” she recalls.

“Through songwriting and music I’m able to really control who I am and the story of what happened to me.”

It’s a process that began while writing recent single ‘Praying For Your Downfall’. Navigating post-break up pettiness with a newfound maturity, the song acted as a turning point for Jensen. “It was really helpful in terms of me acknowledging that some emotions that I feel are just like the inner child screaming. And when a child is screaming, you don’t give them a microphone, you like, put them in another room to calm themselves down.” Allowing moments of validation for her younger self, the project retrospectively explores the full spectrum of her emotional experience.

Finding catharsis through rich, guitar-laden instrumentation and endearingly candid lyricism, each track documents the process of healing from heartache with effortless clarity. “I think the biggest conclusion that I have come to is that once you separate from someone, their life just doesn’t have anything to do with you anymore.” With time for reflection (and self-admittedly, a lot of therapy), it’s a realisation that acts as the premise for the album’s lead single. “‘Massachusetts’ is really about like, I’m going to carry you with me forever, but ultimately we don’t have anything to do with each other,” she recounts.

Having first posted a clip of the song’s chorus to TikTok back in November 2023, her message quickly began to resonate with audiences across the globe. Racking up millions of views - alongside co-signs from Justin Bieber, Stormzy, and producer Dan Nigro - the experience is one Jensen’s still coming to terms with. “I wrote this really personal song about my ex-boyfriend, and posted it to the internet… I can’t believe that that led me to Bieber!” she grins. Reflecting on the unpredictable-yet-pivotal role social media has played for her music, that one-minute demo help to kickstart a new era; going on to be her first release under Dead Oceans (Phoebe Bridgers, Mitski, MRCY), ‘Massachusetts’ became a catalyst for the music we hear today.

While the pressure to chase virality again would be understandable after her last year, Jensen’s focus remains elsewhere. “Every time I’m the only Black woman in a room, especially in the folk music space, I know I just have to keep pushing,” she says. Opening up about some of the issues and stereotypes that she has faced as a Black woman working in that genre space, she expands on how many other artists face similar barriers. “There are so many great young women of colour who are making really cool music that’s not R&B music and they haven’t got discovered,” she notes, pointing to how many are now looking to side-step traditional routes to share their work.

Striving to be the representation that is still lacking in the industry, the multi-instrumentalist continues to use her platform to amplify voices of those who are yet to be heard. “The world hasn’t caught up yet,” she emphasises. But with the likes of Jensen, alongside a growing powerhouse of Black female artists also claiming space within the folk scene and beyond, the change is looking to be a hopeful one.