We spoke with danied about “she’s out again” and more!

Q: Hi! You’ve been sitting with this project for a while, so when did it first start feeling less like “a bunch of songs” and more like this story you needed to tell?

A: This question got me! Funny enough, I started working on a few of these songs already, and that’s when I first got the feeling of “this is just a bunch of songs” and that no one was gonna care as much as I do because a lot of the music reflects life and what we go through. It was truly fans, friends, family, and Kpop Demon Hunters (which is another story) that reminded me that they are more than just songs, they truly are messages. 

Q: There’s a real emotional whiplash on the record in the best way. When you were making it, were you trying to capture grief exactly as it feels, where it’s messy and non-linear?

A: Yes! I made it originally and specifically to flow like the stages of grief. It doesn’t sound jarring when you state them like denial and acceptance, but when you are processing all those emotions, some days are up and some days are the lowest you’ll ever feel. Healing and grief never have resolve, and even though the music ends, it loops back, because it does repeat itself. Repetition is the only constant in the process of grief.

Q: I’m curious about the title she’s out again because it sounds a little funny, a little chaotic, and a little sad all at once. What did that phrase unlock for you?

A: Yeah! The full phrase most known is “nurse, she’s out again”, and relating to when someone has a crazy take, or referring to someone who doesn’t seem to be “all there”. I focused on just the “she’s out again” in part, because I have a history of being related to not being “all there”, so in a way this is my explanation, but also showing I have arrived at myself and my truth. I am outside again!

Q: Since the songs feel like they belong together, did you always know the order mattered, or did the sequence come together later?

A: I always wanted to tell a story, but I wrote these songs separately from each other, some even years apart. It was the one 2am session that made me realize the songs I had written over the past three years at that point related to one another. It was truly so cool to see how it all aligned, connections I made to the songs throughout the process, and realized how they came together. 

Q: On a song like “sabotage,” it feels like you’re being brutally honest with yourself. Was that kind of self-confrontation hard to leave in the final version, or did it feel freeing?

A: It surprisingly felt freeing. I know the melody definitely helps, because many people tell me this is one of their late night drive songs. But yeah, confronting myself has been more difficult than confronting anything else in my life so far. I speak for myself when saying this, but it’s hard to really look at yourself, because most people go straight to their flaws; all the worst things you could say about yourself. But most move along. It’s always at the back of their mind, but seldom honor it or accept that it’s their reality. In this song, I am saying that I accept it. And I want to confront it, head on. 

Q: “out of time” has that urgency to it, like trying to catch up with your own life. Was there a moment in your real life that pushed that song into focus?

A: “Out of Time” is a song I wrote 3 years ago, and during that time, I was fresh(-ish) out of college and really struggling with seeing people who seemed to have it all together, “seemed” being the keyword, and I was getting overwhelmed with my own voice pestering me that I was taking life too easy. Doubling down, I also had ankle surgery, so I felt even more low because I was always hustling, always going, and forced to sit. It always feels like there’s an invisible timer that is about to go off, and then you fail. Failure had always been a big fear of mine growing up, and the song reflects all those moments.

Q: “turn off ur brain” has this almost escapist energy to it. Do you see that song as relief in the middle of the project, or more like a coping mechanism that doesn’t fully work?

A: I’m loving these questions! Yes, “turn off ur brain” was designed to be the escapist pop anthem about horrible coping skills. I grew up listening to a lot of the depression pop of the 2010’s and when you listen closely to those lyrics, you’re like, oh she’s not doing too hot. I wanted to embody the “hearing the worst news of your life and tuning it out” of it, which unfortunately comes second nature to me, and that’s what coping with a situation like that can look like. You can even hear it as the song ends, i’m asking for it to keep tuning it out, but the music fades, showing it only works for so long.

Q: Your sound moves between intimacy and bigger pop moments really naturally. When you’re writing, do you start from the feeling first, or from how you want the production to hit?

A: I am naturally a writer, so usually any thought that happens, it goes straight to the notes app, journal, or voice notes. With production, that usually takes a little more time. The melody is there, but sometimes I’ll revisit something, and it literally feels like a divine download, where every part of the song just hits me. I’m quite emotional as a person, so I feel every note, so it makes me approach it with more intentionality.

Q: Now that she’s out again is actually out and people are living with it, what part of the response has surprised you the most so far?

A: I love that people love “Falling Down”. That one is a very special song to me. The story is in relation to a character in Bojack Horseman, Sarah Lynn, but only a few people know, until this publishes, it’s really about my battle with mental health as well, and how quickly everything can spiral until you are confronting yourself once again, which is why I chose this as the final track. I am also happy that everyone is listening in order too, because I feel like it’s episodic; you have to listen to it that way to see the full picture. 

Q: Looking ahead to the rest of 2026, what’s next for you, creatively or release-wise, and what kind of year are you hoping this turns into?

A: I am going to enjoy she’s out again for a while, let her breathe and perform it hopefully on a tour, or some select shows (if anyone needs an opener, I’m available 😉 )I would love to spread the “live, laugh, love” message as far as I can, cause it truly is my motto right now. After that, I am sitting on years of music I can’t wait to share, so those will be hitting the airways when they are ready.