Carly Rae Jepsen almost didn’t say it
New song one of singer’s most personal releases
Almost Said It: It’s a song so personal Carly Rae Jepsen almost didn’t release at all.
But release it, she did. And now you can get it free on iTunes. We’re giving away Almost Said It, as well as Jepsen’s breakthrough music video, Call Me Maybe, as part of the iTunes 12 Days of Christmas.
Postmedia’s Leah Collins phoned the 27-year-old Grammy-nominee in Mission, where the B.C. girl had just returned home for the holidays.
Here, she reveals what convinced her to go public with this musical diary entry.
Q: So I was hoping you could take me through the story of how you wrote Almost Said It. When did you start writing it?
A: I wrote it a while back, actually, while I was on tour in Canada. It was one of those winter tours, and I ended up just writing it almost journalentry style about one of those romances that never really got a proper start ... Definitely before Call Me Maybe and everything came out.
Q: For iTunes, you included the song as a bonus cut on Kiss, and there are very few acoustic moments on the record. Why did you want to include it, it being such a different song?
A: I think it’s probably one of the most heartfelt and intimate songs that I’ve ever written. It was written about two things: it was written from personal experience and then also a little bit of a story that one of my really close girlfriends had confided in me, and I realized that my theme and her theme were really universal themes — the fact of pining for somebody and feeling there’s something there but never getting to act on it. Actually, every time she’s at a concert, I dedicate it to her and I don’t say her name, but she knows who she is. (Giggles)
Q: Was this one of the songs that was meant to appear on Curiosity, the album, before Call Me Maybe’s runaway success this year?
A: Actually it was a song that I never thought I would ever really release. It was a journal-entry song that I always thought I’d just play for my friends and family and you know, the people close to me, but it was a last-minute decision. It was, in fact, the very last song that I recorded. Like, literally the day before it was due to go to mastering and I just kind of played it for some friends — and I played it for Matthew Koma who ended up producing it — and he said, ‘Oh, this has to be on there, it’s such a real moment of yours and I think that people should hear that.’
Q: Considering you guarded it as such a personal song, how did you react?
A: I think it’s important to have a good sort of — a bravery with that — with kind of allowing people to see the real stories of love as well as me just commenting on it. It’s nice to kind of share a real, intimate moment as well. So I agreed, I guess. (Laughs)
Q: You’re leaving behind a huge year. What’s the plan for 2013? Anything in the next few months we can look forward to?
A: Definitely. We haven’t announced what the new single is yet, but I can tell you that we’re in the works of doing the music video and all the prep work to get it going. As soon as I can let that cat out of the bag, I will. I’m really pumped.
Q: Is this a single that’ll be out after Tonight I’m Getting Over You?
A: I will say a very neu- tral maybe. You’re good. I’ll say that, as well.
We’re looking forward to finishing up Europe with Justin Bieber, which will be really exciting. So I’m going back there to continue with the Believe tour. And then after that I’m going to Japan to headline my first ever solo tour, which is REALLY exciting to me, and continue to write! I luckily have a travelling crew who can pop out demos as we go: Tavish (Crowe) my guitarist, my drummer Nik (Pesut). So we continue to be creative and gear up for whatever’s next.
Q: What’s everything sounding like: the stuff you’re working on with Tavish and Nik?
A: It’s still kind of within the same vein as anything. It’s a hint — a hint — dancier.