Jessie Reyez on “Goliath”, her lover girl era and self -care

In recent weeks, Memes has tried to capture the chaos in early 2025. But perhaps the most accurate comparison with what the first months this year has felt that is the early days of a new and painful division. The intensity of these feelings often gets the most raw versions of ourselves – something singer and songwriter Jessie Reyez knows well. Known for its popular Breakup songs, including “Mutual Friend”, “Still Cu”, “Break Me Down” and “Fuck It”, the Grammy-nominated artist has gained many fans for his artificial ability to transform devastation into related songs.

But Reyez turns a new leaf with its latest track, “Goliath.” It is a delicious feel good love song that would make even the greatest love cynical redness and its greater message is one that the world seems to need right now.

“I didn’t realize how synonymous heart injury music was with me,” she says with a laugh. “To the point that when I put things like this, people are like,” Oh wow, she’s not depressed. “Someone said that. I was like, fucking.”

But contrary to what fans can hope, “Goliath” is not inspired by a new romantic love in Reyez’s life. She keeps that part of her world private. Instead, the lyrics to the choir – “When I say I love you / I mean I would pull every star from the sky down / or square with any goliath / I will moon it through some fire” – actually came to her after having a conversation with his niece.

“It was my youngest niece’s birthday, and I got her on the phone and I was just so happy to talk to her that I started crying,” says Reyez. “I was in the studio when this happened, so I went out on a session and then the waterworks happened.”

After the conversation, she tried to compose herself, returned to the studio and began to create what would become the naked legs for “Goliath”.

I had such a sense of pure love inside, and that’s what came up, “she adds. This feeling is, she admits, a result of her being in what some have called her” lover girl -era. “

“I’m in my roof-my-vitamin era,” she says, laughing again. “I guess you can say I’m in my high chakra -era. The elderly girl is good. I mean – I take it. I don’t hate it.”

Reyez explains that while she often writes songs long after experiencing the high-intensity moments that inspired them-sometimes years later-reflecting “Goliath” exactly where she is in her life right now.

“I definitely experience more joy in my life today than I used to,” she says. “I am much more in contact with peace, do you know? Not to say that I am completely cured. Not to say that I am a guru. I obviously still experience my fuckery. But I have grown more of a relationship with peace and with emotional equilibrium. ”

She annoys that her upcoming and long -awaited next studio album will touch all this: “It’s a little more balanced, where it shows the whole spectrum and how I find joy,” she says about the new album. “I find it with my family. I think joy in nature. I think I am joy in meditation. I think joy with animals. I find joy reading. And I think I am fucking alone.”

In fact, over the past year Reyez has been heavily leaning into her wellness and self -care. She has prioritized her physical, spiritual and mental health more than before – and make it part of her daily practice no matter what she has happened.

Although he is a jet setting pop star, Reyez is definitely down to earth. She spends much of her time with the family (she referred to her parents as her best friends in many interviews) and often finds joy in nature by camping on her own. She goes to the forest with nothing but a backpack filled with her possessions, books and a cooler filled with fresh fruit and nuts.

At more of a daily level, journalization keeps her grounded. “I record twice a day. I journal when I wake up in the morning to document my dreams,” she says. “The evening one always ends up as a summary and a prayer of gratitude.”

Even when she is touring, Reyez makes time for self -reflection. “I’ll make it a point to have a couple of days off after work when I’m completely alone because I know I need it,” she says. “It doesn’t matter where I am – I’ll just make sure I do. I just made it a cost. For if not, I turn into an asshole. If I’m not filled, if I’m not in peace , I am no use for my squad. ”

When it comes to how she navigates in the weight that seems to take over the world – between California’s fire fires and the mass deportations for undocumented Latina immigrants – it is about trying to understand the role she plays in everything.

“Some people are meant to be warriors. Some people are meant to be a peacemaker, and the world needs both,” she says. “The world needs warriors for change, but the world needs peace makers because it doesn’t get bloody. I think (humans) have to find where they feel most useful between these two poles and then activates and applies. It can be prayer, or it may be protest. ”

With everything that is happening in the world, Reyes understands that music has always been a source of resistance and joy for society. She hopes that tracks like “Goliath”, and the songs on her upcoming album (which are expected to release in our) help Latina communities use their inner strength and unite as a collective. As she puts it, it can mean being a warrior – appears as advocate or activist, speaking against injustice or being a peace maker, to calm society. Or, like her, find a way to be and do both.

“This felt like January that never fucking ended, and if there is any indication of how the rest of the year will be, we are looking for a fucking shit show,” she says. “I understand that someone would like some escapism – and I’m glad that one of my songs can give it to anyone who wants to hear and maybe feel a little relief.”

Johanna Ferreira is the content director of PS Juntos. With more than ten years of experience, Johanna focuses on how intersectional identities are a central part of Latin culture. Previously, she spent close to three years as vice editor at Hiplatina, and she has freelanced for many stores including Refinery29, Oprah Magazine, Allure, Instyle and Well+Good. She has also moderated and spoken in many panels about Latin identity.