Q: "tied2you" immediately creates a sense of emotional attachment before listeners even press play. What inspired both the title and story behind the song?

A: Unfortunately, I’m not a person who moves on easily or quickly (be warned). I tend to stay attached to things and people for probably a lot longer than is healthy, and that definitely inspires my songwriting. The line, “I think I’ll always be tied to you,” just came to me one day. I sat down at the piano and started playing around with the melody, and the more I sat with it, the more I realized how much it truly summed up my life. I intentionally named the song tied2you with no spaces. I liked the idea that even the title itself looked like two people literally stuck together.

Q: Every song begins with a spark. Was "tied2you" born from a specific moment in your life, a conversation, or simply a feeling you couldn't shake?
A: It was definitely more of a feeling than one specific moment. I think tied2you came from realizing that I was still emotionally attached to someone even when, logically, I probably shouldn’t be. I’ve always been someone who feels things really deeply and for a long time, and I used to hate this about myself. My dad helped me recently realize that if I didn’t feel so much, I probably wouldn’t be able to write the songs that I write. So tied2you was basically me trying to put that feeling into words. It wasn’t really planned. I just sat down and it kind of came out like vomit.

Q: Is there a specific line in "tied2you" that you think best captures its core message, and what makes that lyric especially meaningful to you?

A: “Even if I tried I could never cut you loose.” I think that’s the real confession of the song. It’s not saying, “I tried to move on and couldn’t.” It’s saying, “I haven’t even really tried to because I know I wouldn’t be able to.” There’s something really hopeless about admitting that. It is a sad line, but it definitely feels like the most honest one for me.

Q: If you could revisit the day you wrote "tied2you" would you tell your past self anything, or do you think the emotions you were experiencing needed to unfold exactly as they did?
A: I wrote tied2you at around 12 a.m. on the floor of my dorm room, in a robe, on my little mini keyboard on some random school night. I was practically whispering into my voice memos because I didn’t want my suitemates to wake up and hear me singing. Honestly, I wouldn’t change any of it. The song is really honest, and that’s exactly how it was written. It felt like I was whispering secrets to myself and turning them into a song. I was actually a little nervous to post it for the first time because I loved it so much and I wanted other people to love it too, but I think that the honesty is probably part of the reason people connected with it, so I’m grateful.

Q: Every musical release marks a point in an artist's career. In what way does "tied2you" reflect who you are right now?
A: tied2you is the song that has felt the most like me. With some of my earlier releases, I wasn’t as confident in myself, and I was constantly looking to other artists and then tearing myself down in every way. I compared my work to theirs constantly, and sometimes felt like I was trying to be every successful artist except myself. Because I was so insecure, I let too many outside opinions influence what I was making, until my projects started to stray from what I actually wanted. With tied2you, I can honestly say the writing, production, everything came together exactly how I envisioned it. It sounds like me. That was a really important moment for me as an artist. As cheesy as it sounds, I finally felt like I wasn’t trying to prove I could be as good as someone else. I just wanted to prove I was good enough as Emma. heartclutch.

Q: As an artist, is vulnerability something that has become easier with each release, or do songs like "tied2you" still feel intimidating to put out into the world?
A: As someone who hates opening up to people, online vulnerability has weirdly come pretty naturally to me, even before I started releasing music. Before I started releasing music, I used to randomly make these “relatable,” “FYP” TikToks about my insecurities. One day I posted a video because I was overwhelmed and spiraling, went to sleep, and woke up to the video going viral. It was such a weird experience because I had felt completely alone when I posted it, and then suddenly thousands of people were there saying, “me too.” I think that’s what I loved most about it - the sense of community. The internet can obviously be a brutal place, but it can also be really beautiful. I think that experience taught me that, as scary as honesty is, you can’t truly let people in without it. And when you do, you feel so much less alone. My followers definitely do that for me more than they probably realize.

Q: Finally if you could leave a message for someone who's about to hear your music for the very first time, what would you say?
A: Don’t be surprised by the angst and drama of it all. I am, as many of my friends have told me, properly a drama queen, and I’ve accepted that about myself. I swear I’m a main character in my own movie, which, yes, leads to a lot of delusion on my part, but also a lot of songs. Nothing I write is chill, unfortunately. I feel big feelings, and I put them in my music. So whether you find it painfully cringey, dramatic, real, or all three, just be prepared and don’t say I didn’t tell you so.

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