Cynthia Erivo revealed the peculiar way she recorded her upcoming album, saying most of it wasn’t even written out before she entered the booth.
“Some of it’s autobiographical, some of it is train of thought. I love the music that we’ve made; most of it is very much just me and my voice. We’ve built a lot of music using the sounds that I can make,” Erivo told CBS News’ Seth Doane for “CBS News Sunday Morning.” The album is expected to drop this year.
When Doane asked the “Wicked” star to explain what she meant, the Oscar-nominated actress and singer shared that she crafts the songs by coming up with lines and layers as she sings.
“Let’s say I sing a vocal line, then that vocal line will live on the piece and then I will sing a vocal line on top of that, a different one,” Erivo explained. “I’ll just keep layering it until there’s nothing left in my head to layer. And then I will sing a top line a melody over that.”
“It’s usually worked,” the Tony winner said, adding that she has no idea what she wants to sing before she hits the booth. “Often, the lyrics come after the vocal pad. They sort of happen as I’m recording it. So I’ll record a line and there will be a line playing in my head as I’m recording a different line. Once that line is in my head, I sing that line and then another line will turn up. And I’ll just going until there’s nothing left.”
When asked if her process was an “unusual” way to go about building an album, she confirmed with, “Yeah, yeah.”
“Most of the album has that [process],” Erivo shared. “I’m really proud of it. The label seems to be proud of it, too. So, hopefully, everyone else will be.”
Erivo’s new album will be her first since the release of her 2021 project “Ch. 1 Vs. 1.” The songstress, who is nominated for Best Actress at the 2025 Oscars, is known for staying in her music bag. Not only did she star in the musical film “Wicked,” she also co-wrote an original song for its forthcoming sequel, “Wicked: For Good.”
Plus, if she takes home the Oscar for “Wicked,” she will officially become an EGOT award-winning artist.
