American singer-songwriter Chelsea Cutler released her third studio album “Stellaria” on October 13, 2023.
It is her first body of work in two years since the 2021 album “When I Close My Eyes”.
The album comprises 15-track, featuring a guest appearance from American singer-songwriter Matt Maeson.
This time, she was producing, engineering the tracks herself with producer Kevin White.
“Making this album has been unequivocally the most difficult creative process I have experienced,” Chelsea Cutler said of the album in a press release. “But this album gave me a chance to experience every emotion on the spectrum. It forced me to confront questions I had previously been too afraid to ask myself, both professionally and personally.”
She continued, “It challenged me to push myself again and again to be better than last time. It offered me moments of intense creative and collaborative joy. Perhaps most importantly, it taught me to enjoy the present, cherish the process, and get comfortable with the uncomfortable.”
She added, “I had just turned 23, and COVID started. I was about to turn 26 by the time things felt more normal. It was like I fell asleep at 23 and woke up at 25, and the whole world was different. I spent a lot of time wondering, 'Am I going to feel like myself again or a new iteration of myself?' I tried to write a song to get reacquainted with myself and love this new person post-pandemic.”
Chelsea Cutler shared on social media, “i honestly did not know when this moment would actually arrive. making an album over two years is crazy because of how much you change and grow in that span of time. initially all i wanted was for this album to blow everybody away, get nominated for accolades, "change my life" and put me on the map in a new way. then more often, i started having days where all i wanted was to have fun again with everything. i just wanted to make music freely and enjoy the creative process of branding an album for the sake of making great art.
ultimately, i learned that chasing things outside of our control will never make us happy. we'd be chasing forever, always at the mercy of the unexpected and unpredictable. what WILL make us happy, however, is being present, practicing gratitude, noticing, setting process goals, feeling our emotions, and meeting life where it's at. Stellaria is about living right here, right now. admiring what is directly in front of us. falling in love with life. being the best version of yourself. building healthy habits. growing. I'm so grateful that Stellaria taught me that i'm exactly where i'm meant to be. i hope in some way, it can do the same for whoever listens to it.
to my incredible team and everybody who contributed to Stellaria, thank you for helping me bring this special work of art to life. it's my face on the artwork, but it takes a heck of a lot of people to make an album. kevin, the best part of making this album has been doing it with a friend and collaborator who believes in me the way you do. til, thank you for being my rock, it was about time you got some love songs written about you. to everybody who listens, thank you from the bottom of my heart for even taking the time out of your busy lives to give the music your attention. it is because of you that i can continue pursuing my dream every day.”
Chelsea Cutler explained about some tracks for the album.
“I Don't Feel Alive”
“It seems like there is a pretty consistent list of things we are encouraged to do as humans to feel our best. Exercise, eat breakfast, sleep, take baths and showers, go to therapy, maintain intimate relationships, take our medicine, journal, go outside, turn off our phones, find hobbies, practice self-compassion, drink water...mathematically, that should all add up to a happy, healthy life.”
This song is the closest thing I've ever written to a journal entry. I felt like I'd hit my breaking point. My body didn't feel like mine, my face didn't look like mine, my brain didn't think like mine. I was doing all the things I was "supposed to". I was exercising, I was weighing myself, I was going to therapy, I was reading books, I was journaling every night, I was making music every day. And still, there was so much dissonance. Something just didn't feel right.
I Don't Feel Alive is a song about existing versus truly living. There is a crucial difference between going through the motions of your day and actually being present in your body to experience everything around you. While it's a bit scary to put this one out, I'd like to be done with all of my beating around the bush. This song is the elephant in the room, the things I've been too afraid to talk about. It is my crippling fear of failure and my reluctance to take up more space. But now that I say these things aloud, I am free. I hope this song brings comfort and emboldens others to confront their biggest fears as well.
“After taking the last few months off to focus on myself and this album, I finally feel ready to be really open and honest about how I've felt the last couple years. this song is my way of doing that. thank you for being patient with me these past few months. The album is finished and this is the start of it all.”
“Men On The Moon”
“The first installment of the next era is finally here. Men on The Moon is a special, special song to me. It embodies everything I imagine for myself and my career moving forward.
Going into this summer, I wanted to challenge myself to dig deeper and confront emotions I had previously lacked the capacity to face. Human connection has always been at the root of my lyricism. And for something that is so essential to the human experience, it sure is incredibly challenging for us just to communicate with one another. As a human race, we've accomplished so much; yet, there are so many nuances to relationships and heartbreak that we simply struggle to understand. That notion is bewildering to me and is what inspired me to write this song.
This next chapter, I want my music to compel you to feel things fully and undeniably. And truly, this song makes my chest crumble, makes my eyes tear up, and makes my mind race. That's how I know it's right.”
“Your Bones”
“When I wrote it, I was just simply giving my best shot at a love song, and if you've been here for awhile, you know that love songs aren't generally my forte. These words just felt like the most easy and truthful way to describe my relationship; but somehow, these words have already grown to seemingly explain love in so many different ways for so many people. Whether it has been self-love or love for a pet, best friend, sibling, child, or partner, it has meant the world seeing all these beautiful pieces of your lives.”
“you're all i ever dreamed of”
“I think a lot of you guys know that I've had a girlfriend for about 5 years. And I think in the past I've been intrigued…by the idea of writing about love but I never really knew how to do it. And I think that this song truly is … my best attempt at capturing what it's like to start dating someone, especially when you're falling in love and you're kinda being told by society that it's not right. And you have this extremely fragile, beautiful and cherished thing and you want so badly to celebrate it, and it feels like when you walk into the room together nothing else matters, but when you leave that room you don't really know what the implications are. It's a very very scary thing, but it's beautiful and it's thrilling.”
“Hold Me While It's Ending” featuring Matt Maeson
“Have you ever loved someone so much that you'd choose the pain of holding on because you just can't let them go? Even when your gut is telling you to move on. Imagine how much you could love the right person if you loved the wrong one this much
Chelsea Cutler “Hotel June”
“I kind of just made up a story, 'cause I drove by this hotel called Hotel June and I just thought that was such a cool title for a song.”
“Stay Anything”
“After weeks of writing, 'Stay Anything' was the first song I wrote that I knew was going to make my next project. It embodies the emotion I intend to weave into this album, and I couldn't be prouder to share it with you all.”
When I got home from the spring leg of the WICME tour, I decided I would use the summer to make my next album. I started writing without any particular direction. Without any real parameters for what the album would be, nothing that I made felt right, and certainly nothing felt cohesive.
One evening, after a long day of starting ideas and abandoning them, we caught a spark. All creatives ever hope to do is a catch a spark. The song poured out of us with ease. The sonics, the structure, the instrumentation, the lyrics. It was seriously thrilling. Nothing feels better than a creative voice channeling itself through you.”
She added, “In the midst of writer's block, frustration, and stagnation, every once in awhile comes along a bit of magic. And I truly believe with 'Stay Anything' we were fortunate enough to have caught some magic.”
