Track by Track- Heart: Isabela

So while I was coming up with the tracks for PSYCHE it began to feel necessary to have monologue tracks. I wanted to give each girl an opportunity in the mixtape to introduce herself and to explain her character as clearly as possible. I wanted to make sure that there would be no confusion about who they were and what they represent in me and in society. I started by writing manifestos for each girl. I really liked the manifestos but I felt like they lacked life when I went to record them in the studio. It’s one thing to hear the PSYCHE girls in my head, it’s another thing to try to express them so other people can actually appreciate them.

So, I reached out to my friend Justin Verbiest, who is a screenwriter, to help organize my thoughts about each character into monologues. Isabela was definitely, without a doubt, the hardest to get right in terms of her speech patterns. I think she’s still evolving. I started off thinking that as my inner goddess she should have a timeless feel to her, she should speak with maybe more classic vocabulary, and that she would draw inspiration from Marilyn Monroe and other divas. The beginning of the scene is a reference to the infamous “Happy Birthday Mr. President” performance by Marilyn Monroe where she shows up fashionably late to perform Happy Birthday for the country. I thought the recreation of the fashionably late trope would be a fun, campy, and familiar way to introduce my inner diva. But as I created more content for Isabela (confessionals, scenes) I think she’s taken on a more modern speech style that’s maybe a bit more Regina George. 😭 She may keep changing while I settle into her voice.

All of the characters represent aspects of how I speak but I think Isabela felt like the most pressure because she’s supposed to be so sexy and I was just like ????? okay so how do I talk sexy lol. So Cassie and I spent a lot of time trying to research different patterns and tropes in the voices of different iconic sex kitten characters. That being said, Isabela talks a bit more than the typical sex kitten who is often designed by the male gaze to be seen and not heard. With Isabela, even more than the others, how she says what she says was so important to me because she’s rooted in emotion and not rationality, you should feel what she’s saying before she’s finished saying it. So I definitely spent a lot of time trying to craft her voice, and as I said it’s still evolving, but I had a lot of fun doing it.

Lyrics

Hello! Oh, thank you! I love you too.  

I am Liv’s heart which means I get to deal with all the fun stuff.

I’m being genuine here. Romance is so much fun to me!

Anything romantic or pretty is my domain.

Included this to tie Isabela directly to Aphrodite, goddess of love and beauty

I love love!

I do!

Sometimes women see me as a threat but it’s quite unnecessary. I wouldn’t steal anyone’s man! Probably. 

This line was meant to reference both the recurring trope of how this character tends to relate to other women, her frequent role as a temptress, and also to illustrate the fact that Isabela isn’t always all that nice and doesn’t care if she isn’t well-liked by others.

I mean let’s be honest he’s at your level, not mine

Period.

I have high standards.

People will say demanding, high-maintenance, volatile but they’ve really got the wrong idea about me.

Again these are traits typically attributed to this kind of diva character but Isabela won’t edit herself because she’s afraid of being labeled these things.

But they’ve really got the wrong idea about me

Re: they have preconceived notions about how a woman who knows what she wants must be like.

I only want to give Liv what she deserves! 

And we deserve expensive lingerie and flights to faraway places

We deserve sex all the time

We deserve our knight in shining armor

This was included to point to Isabela as being a princess in this scenario (and so all the preconceived notions of what a princess is like can be applied to her) but also because Isabela is the part that reminds me that love and intimate relationships are just as important as whatever achievements I may be focused on. So yes, Isabela unapologetically places high value on maintaining the knight in shining armor fantasy.

We deserve to be adored by the world.

This is points to the narcissism of Isabela’s character but I also want to acknowledge that ultimately Isabela wants to be loved.

I don’t think there’s anything wrong with asking for exactly what you want. And what I want is everything. 

I don’t believe in limitations 

I am the goddess that exists inside of Liv. 

Of course I want the world.