Toronto artist Maria-Therese is a powerhouse voice whose music is deeply rooted in her personal story of survival, trauma, and ultimate rebirth. Having recently signed to Warner Music Canada, she translates her emotional journey into raw, alt R&B that she describes as coming from a “bleeding heart”.
On the Monarch EP, how did you choose the themes of healing and rebirth, and what was the inspiration behind choosing the name?
“I was going through a couple of versions. I really wanted everything to feel intentional. And at the time when I was creating the project, I was going through what felt like a rebirth. Like everything in my life that I knew to be true was changing around me. And Monarch is a very spiritual symbol for me. Like it’s representing death, rebirth, you know, through its migration, it evolves so many times. Although I was going through a breakup, this project isn’t about a breakup. It’s really about finding oneself, healing trauma, and evolving.”
How do you approach the vulnerability of sharing such raw, specific experiences in your songwriting?
“I feel like prior to creating this, I had kind of disconnected in a sense with my songwriting. Creating this really caused me to like get out of my comfort zone for sure. And I think like “Twist the Knife”, records like that on the project—that was really an emotional thing for me. I feel like I was transported back in time to that moment with that person, and I was crying when I wrote it. It was very heavy, but I guess like closure, like I was coming to terms with everything, so it was healing as well.”
How does your personal experience influence not just the lyrics, but also the vocal delivery in your songs?
“The vocal delivery, especially, it’s all deriving from like emotion and like real pain and sorrow and grief. I think being an abuse survivor and surviving, and running away at 15, taught me a lot. Everything that you’re hearing in this project is very like stemming from like everything that I’ve been through leading up to this point in my life. And I think that’s where I’m able to project those vocals, and like really, I think one of my strengths as an artist is I’m really able to convey the emotion through the record and through the song and have the listener almost feel what I’m feeling. I always say like I’m a bleeding heart, and I think that’s what these songs are.”
What is the best piece of advice you received about staying authentic to your story since your debut in 2020?
“I think I’ve always been told that I’m too much or I feel too deeply. And I’ve always felt really bad about that, and maybe made to feel bad about that. I think through all of that noise, I was told once by like an artist, John K, and he was like, ‘When you’re up there and when you’re when you’re performing, like, you’re there for them.’ And they connect with you because you are you. They’re not connecting with you because you’ve lessened yourself, or you’re changing yourself to fit somebody else’s ideal version of you. I’ve gotten to be proud of that. And I think like that’s the brightest advice that I’ve gotten through like just being myself.”
