Happy is already a state, so if you create something that's happy... OK, wonderful... but when you're in a place of distress or trauma, there are so many more directions that can go in to me. Something that's happy can only truly go in one direction, whereas with something like distress, anger, trauma, there are so many more interesting possibilities that those emotions can create.
JlinI love to be challenged. I like to be in places where I don't have easy ways out; it's either I do it or I don't and, in my mind, I don't really have the option of don't.
JlinI want the people making this music to stick to what they know in terms of ensuring that they remain true to that and the authenticity. Don't be afraid to be original and explore of course, but don't necessarily abandon certain standards in order to try to appeal to other people.
JlinI have to dig from myself versus digging from something that I like. Digging from something you like is easy whereas from your inside, it's a totally different ballgame altogether. That's not a matter between picking red and blue, it's not like that. It's a decision, it's a choice and, like I've said in the past, it's like jumping off a cliff and hoping you survive the jump.
JlinIf you create something, it really should mean something more than that to you. I had to grow into all of this though, through a learning process. I didn't wake up one day and just say, 'Yeah, that's Jlin, there it is'. That's why I said it took my entire life to make this album and it comes back to having that comfort zone - if you don't have one, the more progress you make and the more creative you become over time.
Jlin