āI wanted to love this,ā Rapp says. āI wanted to be able to walk away from this and be so proud of myself and impressed, no matter what anybody else thought.ā Her first album, 2023's ā had been an experiment in figuring out her sound (a mix of pop, R&B and heart-wrenching ballads), and assembling a collection of songs that worked together. This album, out Friday, offered the chance to do it again, with an eye toward the way her life had changed in the intervening years.
āThat intention, and also wanting to prove it to myself, was really grueling,ā Rapp told The Associated Press. āAnd also really fun.ā
The writing process gave Rapp, 25, an outlet to work through the burnout-inducing whirlwind that was her career in those two years. Uncharacteristically restrained in its vocal styling, the album's lead single, āLeave Me Alone,ā is strikingly open ā clever zingers allude to her departure from HBOās the media frenzy that surrounded in the 2024 remake of and the external pressure she felt to put out more music after the positive reception of āSnow Angel.ā Basically, anything that's been said about her in the last few years? She reframes it, poking fun at her reputation and the industry.
āLeave Me Aloneā felt like a proper introduction to the album, Rapp says, and āBite Meā ā both a warning and a tease ā the appropriate title. Paris Hilton and Monica Lewinsky were among the famous faces that teased the album upon its announcement, donning merch emblazoned with the title in bold print. Rapp herself posed in front of a newsstand filled with mock tabloids depicting her as a diva, concealed behind big sunglasses and a fur coat, to promote the second single, āMad.ā (āThat's a Rapp!ā the headline read.)
āIt really feels just like a time capsule of those two years of my life, a lot having to do with the business and the industry and peopleās expectations of me,ā Rapp says of the album. āAnd then also me wanting things for myself and being confused where those two roads diverge.ā
Rapp's confidence and humor is evident across the album, just as it is on stage ā āI write lyrics in the way that I talk,ā she says. Many of the tracks tackle the destabilizing emotions that accompany the beginning and end of relationships, whether platonic or romantic, and how her now-very public career has amplified the challenges of creating, and maintaining, those connections.
āIām so surrounded all the time, but I feel so lonely, and it feels really heavy and isolating. And I think a lot of that is just being an artist. And I also think a lot of that is just like the nature of like the business, for better or for worse," she says. The can't-be-bothered attitude heard on āLeave Me Aloneā is countered by the ache of āThat's So Funny,ā which recounts the end of a deeply affecting, but ultimately toxic friendship in Rapp's signature soaring vocals.
That doesn't mean Rapp isn't also having fun. The cheeky āAt Least I'm Hotā features Rapp's girlfriend, the singer and guitarist Towa Bird. āI love when artists give you a clue into their lives, and the people who make their lives full,ā Rapp said. The track, she says, is also just funny: āWho better to put on that than like the funniest person alive?ā
The album's mix of emotions ā heartache followed by the rush of a new crush, the impostor syndrome that accompanies the thrill of success ā is something has been exploring since her 2022 EP, āEverything to Everyone.ā She wants listeners to feel the conflict, too ā and know that they aren't alone in experiencing it.
In June, Rapp served as a grand marshal of the in Washington, D.C., alongside and Deacon Maccubbin. āIt can be difficult to feel resilient and empowered as a queer person,ā Rapp said. āBecause World Pride was in D.C., I was like, well, I canāt not be there.ā She recalled a conversation with Cox, who dispelled some of Rapp's fears of coming off as self-important in the role by emphasizing the power of showing up, and showing face. āRight now, when everything is so under attack, which it pretty much always is, it feels like thatās the time to be really loud.ā
Rapp will launch the North American leg of her āBite Meā tour at the iconic Red Rocks Amphitheater in September before making stops at New York's Madison Square Garden and as a headliner at the Toronto stop of the She'll tour Europe in March.
As she readies for fans to hear the album, she hopes it offers them some reprieve. āI hope that the weight of the world doesnāt feel as massive,ā she said. āItās really easy to obsess over everything and be constantly lost in your head.ā
Giving them a glimpse into hers, she hopes, is empowering ā and fun: āItās just, it feels like a big party that like everybody wants in on.ā
