Tori Kelly On Making A Statement With ‘TORI.’: “This album is definitely me just having fun and painting whatever I can.”

Releasing a self-titled album isn’t your usual type of record.

To several artists, any album or record with your name directly attached to it carries a certain weight to it — with some even arguing that it makes its own sort of statement. Just look at what The Beatles, Madonna, Fleetwood Mac, St. Vincent, and even Charli XCX have managed to accomplish with their eponymous albums — these releases have gone on to become some of their most renowned and influential records throughout music history.

As seen from what American singer-songwriter Tori Kelly has accomplished with her recently released record TORI., it’s arguably her best album to date. This self-titled work serves not only as a bold declaration of her artistic evolution but also as a masterful showcase of her songwriting and vocal prowess. TORI. is a sonic tapestry that threads together her diverse influences and experiences, capturing a fresh and deeply personal perspective that resonates with both intimacy and grandeur that highlight her versatility. Each track on the record feels like a piece of a larger, more intricate mosaic, reflecting her growth and confidence as both a creator and a performer.

Now, Tori is taking the sweet, nuanced sounds of TORI. to the stage, bringing the album’s essence to life through her live performances. On her Philippine stop of the tour, the multi-Grammy-award winner sat down with Billboard Philippines for an exclusive one-on-one interview, where she discussed the creative process of how the record came to life, what she loves most about life on tour, her love for K-pop, and what lies ahead beyond the Purple Skies World Tour.

Billboard Philippines: First off, I just want to welcome you here to the Philippines! How does it feel to be here for the first time and performing in a country that really loves you?

It really is like a ‘pinch me’ moment, I think, because, you know, the power of the internet. I’ve been able to gain so many fans, you know, all over the world, which is so wild to me. But actually stepping foot in the actual country and doing shows and seeing faces, like, it just all becomes more real and more tangible.

So this is definitely very surreal and a dream come true. Because I see so many comments like, you have to come to the Philippines. And, you know, there’s so much support coming from this country. So I’m really grateful to finally be here.

Of course. And, you know, we’re honored to have you. And, you know, your fans, I see some of them commenting, as you mentioned. Like, knowing how Filipino fans are, they’re chronically online. So that’s a lot of comments, right? 

Yes, it really is — but I love it!

So this Purple Skies World Tour aims to celebrate the release of your self-titled album, TORI. How do you feel now that the record’s finally out for the world to listen to?

It feels great. Yeah, this is an album that, you know, it was coming off of the heels of COVID. And then before that, I had an album that was a lot more. It was a lot more sad and personal and was going through a lot of heavy things. So I think having healed from all of that, coming out of this time where we were all in lockdown. And then just feeling like I want to get out there and to dance more — to sing fun songs and just have a good time. I think that’s really where a lot of these songs came from. 

I also think over the years, I’ve become much more confident as a performer. So this time, I wanted songs that would reflect that and allow me to express all these different sides of me that maybe I haven’t shown in the past.

I love that. And with the final result of it, it’s something that both your fans and the whole world absolutely loves. So given the nature of this being like a self-titled record, some people say that it makes more of a statement about who you are as an artist, especially since it’s your name that is attached to it.

Yeah, exactly.

Can you walk us through the creation process of how you wrote it and how it ended up being the phenomenal record that it is?

Why thank you! Yeah, I wanted to name the album TORI., because I mean, when I realized that I hadn’t done a self-titled record yet — like at all. it made me think, “Maybe I should do it, you know?”

As you said, when I look at artists who have done self-titled albums, it kind of does seem like a statement — you know, like they’re taking ownership of their career. And they’re really becoming their own person or stepping into themselves more. So I took inspiration from that because that is how I felt and got to work on this whole album with the amazing John Bellion. 

I’m a huge fan of his and I always have been. Because he’s not only an amazing artist; he’s a phenomenal writer and producer who is just so versatile, too. So I basically just went in the studio and was like, “Hey, I just want songs that I can belt out in the car and just, you know feel really good and empowered to sing about.” I want them to feel anthemic and cinematic — and we kind of fell on this. We were really inspired by [the] late ’90s, and early 2000s, which is like, my favorite era of music.

You channeled it so well!

Thank you! Yeah. So that was a big, big inspiration that we wanted to include in not only the sounds that you hear –– but also in the overall aesthetic and the creative direction of the album too.

With TORI. being out now. How do you feel? It’s like an evolution of your work, considering all the records that you’ve released in the past.

Yeah, I feel like with this album, there are definitely is some new sounds and new styles that people haven’t heard from me yet I still feel are very authentic for me. Because, like I said, I grew up in the early 2000s, you know, late ’90s. So it feels like my like my childhood self would be very excited about this music. (Laughs)

But also, I wanted to include sounds that maybe you have heard in the past. It kind of feels like everything that I’ve done in my career so far is sort of on one album. Here you have the more inspirational songs like “High Water” and “Oceans” which is very like OG Tori —  the stripped-down acoustic side of me. But I also put some R&B elements in there! 

Yet still, there was just a whole new vibe as well with the Y2K stuff. So this album is definitely me just having fun and painting whatever I can — just throwing a bunch of stuff out there that I was really excited about.

You know, I think the end result really does show that you’ve accomplished all of that. I actually read somewhere that you previously mentioned that you were inspired by Aaliyah, Nelly Furtado, and Timbaland —  but the thing is, you were able to do your own take on it, which is ultimately really impressive.

Aw, thank you so much. They were really what I was trying to channel and take influence from, but I’m glad I was able to do my own spin on it.

So, you mentioned that you worked with John Bellion for this one and you also got to work with Ayra Starr and Kim Chae-Won of LE SSERAFIM. So what was the collaborative process like with all these amazing artists?

Oh, my goodness. I guess I’ll start with John because he just is so talented and he’s so fun to work with! He was very open to just working on whatever we could; he would throw out ideas and I’d throw out my ideas. So it ended up becoming this insane back-and-forth between the two of us even when the songs were done, or when we thought they were done.

He lives on Long Island on the East Coast, so I’m in California, so I would fly back home after working with him and we would still be texting like, oh, should we change this whole part? It was like the process never finished. So we finally had to say, “OK, the album is done. We need to stop tweaking it.” But he was just so amazing, really. I think he really pulled out a lot of new like new tones to in my voice and really challenged me to try different things.

Working with Ayra Starr was also really amazing! We were able to be in the same room for that, which is actually rare nowadays. She was so sweet and I got to witness her just, you know, write her verse and take the song to a whole new level. She’s just incredible. 

And then with Chae-Won. You know, we [John and I] wrote Spruce and then we thought this song would be so cool with the K-pop feature because I love K-pop and always wanted to just collaborate in that specific world of music. So we basically just reached out to LE SSERAFIM because I absolutely love their work — and Chae Won was so amazing because she was immediately down. So she did her verse and made the song really special. Now I feel like we have to perform it at some point, and I need to meet her — even just to tell her thank you in person.

I know that is something the world would go crazy for! Since you mentioned that you love K-pop, who would you say is your favorite group?

I mean I do love LE SSERAFIM, but I also love and think that BLACKPINK is amazing. Gosh, with BLACKPINK, I actually got to meet Rosé as well backstage at Coachella one time. And I couldn’t believe that she was there!

Yet it was she who cried when she met me. I was so confused, like “Wait, what do you mean?” But she told me that I inspired her and that she even covered some of my songs online. Yet, I had no idea about that, but now I’ve seen that a lot of these K-pop stars have covered some of my songs online which I just think is so cool. But yeah, it was very special to have Chae Won on that song.

Tonight marks your debut performance on the Philippine stage, are there any surprises or special moments that you’re planning for your Filipino fans in attendance at tonight’s show?

You know what? You never know what can happen at my show because I feel like I really feed off of the fans that are there. 

I love that there’s a certain aspect to the show that I think is like, you know — I guess for lack of a better term — structured. I play the songs and have fun with them and move around and stuff like that. But then there’s always these moments that I always like to include as a part of my show that’s just like a free-for-all. Like, you never know what’s going to happen. 

It just depends on the city I’m in because I don’t like to be, you know, too robotic or anything. I just love feeding off of the audience in front of me — so, yeah, I guess they can expect to sing very loudly tonight. I’m going to make them do that. (Laughs) 

But honestly, I don’t think that I’ll even have to ask them to do it though, because I feel like everyone can sing here. There are a lot of amazing singers here from what I’ve noticed. So yes, I promise it’s going to be a good time and I’m really looking forward to it.

What would you say is it that you love about life on tour and performing live for an audience in front of you?

I love that it’s different for every show. You know, you can rehearse the show and you can practice certain things to get your show to a good place. But if you’re like me, I feel like I’m the type of artist that just loves the element of surprise. Like I get up there and I just never know how it’s going to go.

And for me, that’s a really good feeling because I think that above anything else, I’ve just always loved performing. I think touring is just like the most fun that I have ever had. And honestly, I think this Purple Skies Tour in particular is very special because I’m getting to finally go to places like Manila and finally visit these other countries that I’ve never even been to or ever even stepped foot in. So it’s going to be very memorable for me, I think.

There are still so many more places that you’re going to head off to! You’re going to bring your artistry to so many parts of the world and people are going to love it. It’s just amazing that you’re finally here — but beyond the Purple Skies World Tour, is there anything that lies ahead for you? Like any new career ventures or new music on the way?

I definitely can say that new music is on the way. I mean, that’s for sure. I also have some things in my pocket for that. But yeah, I think just hopefully getting to do more and more shows, you know, visiting those places I haven’t been to while continuing to put out new music.

But there’s also a Sing 3 on the way!

Oh, yes! So, that should be fun. As a fan of the franchise, I’m looking forward to that.

I don’t know exactly when we’re doing it, but it’s definitely sometime soon.

Everyone loves Mina the Elephant. I’m pretty sure you’re aware, but it’s kind of become a meme of its own. But everyone loves you for the role — like they all love your vocals and your performance to the point that it’s like its own living and breathing pop culture element already.

Totally. I love it, and I love how people have received the character. I think it’s great, and I can’t wait to revisit the role soon. But for now, being able to continue doing these shows is what’s kind of on my mind right now. So I’m trying to stay present and enjoy the ride.

Listen to Tori Kelly’s recently released album TORI. below: