Melanie Herrera Captures the Wonder of Being Alive on Debut Album ‘A

Some things take longer to bloom—That is the case with Melanie Herrera’s debut album. A Fearful & Wondrous Thing goes round on subjects such as fear and insecurity when taking risks. At the same time, it holds hope and curiosity for what’s to come. The thought that doing it scared is better than not doing it all transpires throughout the record.

While Herrera only released her first single in 2022, she’s been surrounded by music her entire life. Growing up with a Latin jazz musician parent, she has been on stage since she was a child. She spent her earlier years following a ballet and choir education, followed by a pursuit of acting. Now, she’s stepping onto a new chapter of sharing her stories through her own words.

“This record is an arrival—both to life and to myself as an artist. I’m a late bloomer who spent years believing I wasn’t someone who could accomplish great things, which kept me rooted in anxiety and self-doubt,” the artist explains. “These songs came after I finally broke free of that story. They reflect a life lived in full, complete with love, grief, mystery, joy, and all the beautiful chaos of being alive.”

The album pulls from various sonic atmospheres, from indie and pop to musical. They create a unique sound that the artist describes as ‘storybook pop’. It begins with a return to the roots on introductory track “There Was Me (Don’t You Remember)” which unfurls a realization of one’s identity coated in nostalgia. Amid all risks, it’s the bravery to pursue a long-lasting dream.

The right time is now: that is the message that Herrera sends with this record. If she doesn’t belong there as “Cool Girls Party” insinuates, she will make her own space. Even if her mind has doubts as portrayed in “Imposter,” she questions the imposter syndrome and turns it around in an empowering move. “You’re Doing Great” sees self-comparison to other people who seem to have more success. In spite of all these adversities, it’s the daring nature of trying that is highlighted in an ambitious stance.

At the center of this inventive pop project is the sentiment of love. From the flirty, early butterflies of a relationship in “I Think I Lied” to taking a risk in “Call You Baby,” these are only some facets of love that are represented. Love can be as exhilarating as it can be painful—which Herrera paints with the mark that someone leaves on you in “A Little, Always” and the grief that comes with loss on “Shouldn’t The Flowers Stop Growing?”. She closes the album with “Love is Like Surgery” which encapsulates all the intricacies that love can contain.

Herrera proves to be an intriguing up-and-coming voice in pop, whose unique songwriting and sonic combinations show an unmissable sensibility. All Too Creative caught up with the artist to talk about her album, A Fearful & Wondrous Thing, out now.

ATC: What does the title A Fearful & Wondrous Thing represent for you?

HERRERA: For me, this title is, oxymoronically, about describing the indescribable nature of life in all its fullness. Life is joy and grief, love and loss, dark and light, fear and wonder. It’s a magical thing. The record isn’t religious, but the words are from Psalm 139, and I think describe the grand and special mystery that is every human being.

ATC: “There Was Me (Don’t You Remember?)” feels like a return to the inner child. When did you start writing this song and what prompted the creation of it?

HERRERA: I think I first wrote this song in 2022… it was the beginning of my journey with this music, and I had just finished doing a lot of hard work to get back to the truth of who I was as an artist. This work was hard. And even though I was so grateful and happy to be able to finally write music again, and set goals, and do things that had previously felt really hard for me to do.

It made me think a lot about how much easier it had been to just be a child before life set in. And how much I wanted to just get back to that. I was walking my dog on a warm-weathered morning that still had the lingering coolness of night in the air. It reminded me of the beginning of the school year, which reminded me of childhood. I walked back home and wrote the whole thing in 20 minutes.

ATC: You described your music as ‘storybook-pop’. What was the journey like to get to this artist identity?

HERRERA: I was told by a music executive that my music sounded too theatrical to be pop. I disagreed—I’ve said many times, all pop is theatrical! The best pop, even. However, I was grateful for this rejection. Because I know my style sounds at the convergence of a few different influences. And without some terminology, it was running the risk of being misdefined. So I made up the term ‘storybook pop’ to describe it. Storybook pop is pop music that is narrative-driven, theatrically influenced, with modern pop production and cinematic touches.

ATC: How does “I Think I Lied” fit into the story of the album?

HERRERA: I think desire is an important mention when we’re looking at the complexity of our lives. Messy desire has marked so many of our stories, why not include it in a record about the multifaceted nature of life? Plus, I think it’s a great example of storybook pop, and sonically it makes sense amongst the other songs.

ATC: There is a lot of vulnerability within the record. What track were you most scared or doubtful about releasing?

HERRERA: Probably “Whatever’s Left.” It’s about being a child of divorce. And truthfully, I wish we could live in a time where indie artists could be more ambiguous about what our songs are about, but modern marketing almost requires an excessive amount of honesty and over-explanation of our art. So I had to be willing to be honest on social media about what this song was about… and I didn’t really want to get into it, honestly! But I loved the song, and I wanted to share it.

ATC: “You’re Doing Great” talks about comparing yourself to someone else and feeling behind in your career. How was the process of putting this common experience into words?

HERRERA: I love this song. It means a lot to me. Writing it was really cathartic, especially the bridge, which is basically just a screaming temper-tantrum prayer, and I feel proud of how I worded it. It was so important to me to get that right… I struggled with it for a while, and ended up just sitting at a cafe outside and working and working until it was done. I did have to be careful throughout the song because I really didn’t want some of the lyrics to come off as too… petty or patronizing to younger artists. I wanted it to be clear the problem was me, and I didn’t want to come off as spiteful or unkind. I changed the lyrics a few times because of this.

ATC: You began with acting but ultimately decided to focus fully on songwriting. How did you come to that decision?

HERRERA: Acting was something I pursued because I got lucky with early opportunities, and I was too scared to try and be a musician. It was too unknown and required too much of me – more than I knew how to push myself to give. Throughout my early 20s, I didn’t have the skills to self-actualize or self-discipline. Things that you very much need in order to be a musician. I thought these things were unavailable to me. During the pandemic, I got so sick of myself. I was like, “Why not me?”. After therapy and life coaching, it turns out I was neurodivergent all along. Learning how to work with my brain (and healing the parts of me that got used to telling myself that I can’t) changed my life.

ATC: The visuals and aesthetic for this album are very dreamy and whimsical. What is your connection to this specific aesthetic?

HERRERA: As a kid, I always felt my most creative playing pretend, running around outside in the grass with no shoes, and burying myself in books and stories. I feel like my creative self is an extension of my inner child. Living in a fairytale sort of world just makes sense for her.

ATC: If “Strangers Again” could be on the soundtrack for a romcom movie or TV show, which one would it be?

HERRERA: “Someone Great” on Netflix is basically about this exact thing! That last scene where she looks at her ex across the dance floor with so much love in her eyes, but knowing the relationship is over and they’re basically just two people with this beautiful past… I sobbed.

ATC: “Shouldn’t The Flowers Stop Growing?” feels very musical fairytale inspired. What made you want to have this specific sonic atmosphere?

HERRERA: I don’t normally like to write or release songs that are so purely musical theatre, but this was just the natural journey of this one, and I didn’t want to change it to sound more pop-forward. I felt that the message of the song came through most authentically in the pure sincerity of a theatrical song… and honestly it didn’t really feel like I had a choice. It wrote itself.

ATC: The last track on the album is “Love is Like Surgery.” What made you want to conclude the record with the sentiment of love in particular?

HERRERA: Because I think the throughline of our existence is love. While life is full of ups and downs, at the end of the day, isn’t everything just a reminder that we’re so lucky to have loved and been loved? That song is about how love is in everything—how it hurts, but we want it anyway. At the end of the day, the cost is worth it.

ATC: What are you hoping for with the release of this album?

HERRERA: I’m hoping that people who listen are reminded of the complicated beauty of their own lives and have a new gratitude for their messy, marvelous existence.

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