Categoría: English

Last Friday, my new single, «Lonely Night,» was released. It’s a preview of my upcoming album, which, if all goes well, will be released next month with its lead single.

I think this song perfectly embodies the sound I want to create from now on, a sound that defines me very well: a fusion of synth-pop and soul, which I call synth-soul.

After «Make Me Free,» I believe this is a logical step forward and the perfect preparation for an eight-song album that will feature a variety of styles (the result of my initial vision for the album, a soul-oriented project, which then evolved into R&B and later synth-pop). These styles will blend seamlessly together and will serve as a prelude to everything that’s to come, which I’m already working on, as I’ve already recorded three songs for the next album.

For me, music is a refuge, a journey, an expression… Music is me, my life, and everything I’ve ever wanted to do. I feel privileged to be able to do it, because it allows me to fulfill one of my greatest dreams: to sing.

Last Tuesday was quite eventful. In the morning, I was in the recording studio once again to record a new track. It’s a ballroom song, possibly the most house-influenced track on the album that will be released next year (if all goes well this year, the new album will be out in June, so it’s just around the corner).
The recording session was one of the fastest, most agile, and smoothest I’ve ever done. The song suits me perfectly, and I felt very comfortable during the session. I didn’t have to do many takes because everything came together quite well the first time. The only minor issue was occasionally making mistakes with the lyrics, which is normal.
I’m really enjoying this new musical phase, where I’m creating songs of a much higher quality than anything I’ve done before, although I’m very proud of my last album, I’m OK I’m Not, which is still my best work to date. I always say the best is yet to come, and I’m convinced that’s true, especially with this new door that has opened in my life, which will allow me to experience a rebirth. Yes, it’s not my first rebirth.

I finally know who I am. I finally have answers to a life filled with clumsiness, stumbles, and misunderstanding from others. I always knew I was different, and now I know why.

“Javier, you’re so weird.” “Don’t be like that, Javier.” “Why are you doing that, Javier?” “Behave yourself, Javier.” “You should change and be like everyone else, Javier…” These are phrases I’ve heard my whole life (and will continue to hear), and they’ve made me feel so small. Now everything makes sense, and I know I’m not small. I’m huge, because I have the most powerful weapon I could ever possess: knowledge. It’s been a process that has lasted a whole month (two since I decided to start). It’s turned out to be a very difficult, hard, and painful journey, but the kind that hurts on the inside, not the outside, and it’s been worth it. To put it simply, it’s as if dawn has suddenly broken.

Knowing who I am has not only given me a new opportunity and answers to many things and behaviors, but it has also brought me sadness (for feeling that everything would have been different if I had known sooner and for many memories that have always made me unhappy) and anger (for all those who have treated me badly for being different). The past can’t be changed, and now I just have to look ahead.
Welcome to the rest of your life, Javier.

The release week begins. This coming Friday, my new single, «Lonely Night,» comes out as a preview of my upcoming album, which I hope will be available in June.

Everything is ready, and the music video is finished too. In the end, I used the footage we shot a few months ago (I usually shoot music videos well in advance so I’m not caught short on time). I wanted to shoot a different one (because I appear with crosses, and I don’t wear them anymore), but I haven’t had the time, and frankly, I haven’t felt like it either. It’s getting harder and harder for me to shoot music videos, and I’ve decided to always opt for simplicity and ease. I’ll be wearing crosses in the video, but when I filmed it, it represented me, so that’s also me. It’ll be like the breakup video.
The next single is also almost ready; I just need to prepare the photos and edit the music video. This time, very little time will pass, and I hope it will be released only a month after «Lonely Night.» That’s because I’m behind schedule with the initial plan due to personal reasons. The new album should be out already, but it’s okay. June isn’t a bad month either. The wheels are in motion.

Madonna is finally back, and she’s going all out. A year and a half ago, she announced she was recording new music and would be releasing a house album for the dance floor. It was later revealed that it would be a follow-up to her landmark album, Confessions on the Dance Floor, released in 2005, and produced by Stuart Price. Initially slated for release at the end of last year, it was delayed for unknown reasons. Finally, almost two weeks ago, the release of Confessions II was announced for July 3rd, along with the cover art and different editions available for pre-order. The first single from the album, «I Feel So Free,» was also released, and despite not being a single, it’s performing well on the charts with around 4.5 million streams on Spotify in just over a week.

The song sounds powerful and is a blend of 90s house music with the whispered vocals of Madonna’s own «Justify My Love.» It’s a perfect song for the dance floor, and it’s just the introduction to an album that will have sixteen tracks.

After making an appearance last week at Sabrina Carpenter’s Coachella concert, performing a duet titled «Bring Your Love,» the single’s release date has been announced today. It will be released in three days, on April 30th. This song has all the ingredients to become a huge hit and return Madonna to the top of the charts worldwide.
There were many rumors about this possible duet, and it has finally become a reality. I think it’s perfect because it brings together the Queen of Pop and one of the current pop princesses in a single song. Newer generations aren’t aware of what Madonna means to music, what she was, and what she continues to be. Her duet with Sabrina Carpenter, one of the most popular artists among young people today, is a brilliant move. For me, it’s the best introduction to this era, which promises to be one of the best in Madonna’s entire career. I’m really looking forward to it because everything I’ve seen and heard has captivated me. Maybe not so much the album cover, but that’s beside the point.
Personally, I think this return to music by Madonna, after seven years without an album, is about regaining hope in music and having a great sense of excitement for everything that’s to come.

In this whirlwind of feelings, emotions, changes, and everything that’s been happening all at once lately, I’m experiencing an earthquake of sensations inside that I can’t quite explain, but which will soon have an explanation. I’ll finally know who I am, if I’m what I always thought I was, or something so different that it will be a new beginning. This uncertainty is eating me up inside, but I have to keep going day by day.
That’s on top of Mina’s death, the delicate moment the Wiccan community is going through, and, honestly, I still don’t know how I’m managing it all without going crazy or starting to walk on the ceiling.
Meanwhile, we have to keep going; the world keeps turning, and I’m not going to stop for myself.
This week I started receiving the demos of what will be the new song we’re going to record, the ballroom song, and I’m really excited. The producer and I have been communicating these past few days to polish the details. I’m minimalist with the beats, and he’s creative, so we always try to find a middle ground. It’s almost finished, and we’re still deciding whether to record it this Tuesday or next. I think doing it next week would be too soon, and it still needs some polishing, but it’s going to be amazing.

I hope the new album comes out in June, and this one we’re working on will be for next year. And (including the English version of «Mi Jaula,» titled «My Cage»), with this song, we’ll have three.

My next single is already scheduled for May 8th. It’s going to be called «Lonely Night,» and initially, it was going to be a very ’80s-style soul ballad, but in the end, the synth-pop remix version we recorded recently will be the main version because it’s very much in line with where I want to go now, and it connects perfectly with «Make Me Free,» which will be the album’s lead single and also its title track. I’m really looking forward to everything being released after the delay with my initial plan.

Regarding literature, I’ve revisited an idea I was working on while developing the novel I just finished. It was a story set in the early seventies about a gay boy who wants to be a singer. After much thought and reviewing all my outlines, I’ve decided it might be a good idea to move the setting to the early eighties, during the height of the Movida Madrileña cultural movement, and also revisit an idea I had some time ago about writing a story about an Alaska fanatic. Everything would be connected. Preparing this novel will take me at least a few days (or weeks), and I’m eager to start writing it.

I look at myself in the mirror and ask myself, Javier, who are you?

These days my head is a whirlwind. So many things are happening at once, and sometimes I don’t know how I manage to seem like I can handle it all when inside I’m about to break down, because I think it’s too much, that I can’t take it all, and that I need to rest.
Going to the recording studio is like therapy for me, because there I leave my own world and enter another where I fit in, I can be myself, and I do something that makes me happy: sing.

This morning I had an appointment and I was able to disconnect from the real world for a while. We weren’t going to record any new songs yet, so it was time for the Spanish version of «Make Me Free,» titled «Hazme Sentir». The recording went really well, and I felt comfortable. Since I love this song so much, I really enjoyed it. I’ll keep recording Spanish versions because the idea is to eventually have a Spanish album.
Afterward, I showed the producer the song we’re going to record now so he can start producing the backing tracks. This is a song I composed inspired by ballroom culture, and it’s sure to be very catchy.

Although my new album hasn’t been released yet, having the next one already started gives me a lot of peace of mind to work at a relaxed pace, knowing I have enough material to release another album next year.
In the meantime, I’ll keep working.

In a somewhat impromptu way, we filmed a new music video today, or at least we tried. I say «we» because I don’t know what will come of it. We didn’t film much footage, and some of it won’t be usable because of the lighting. I hope I can salvage something from the rest. If not, we’ll come back another day to film more. Anyway, the music video format is a bit outdated since TikTok, Reels, Shorts, and other short video formats won the battle (I remember the Vine days. Everything comes back around). Now a music video is more of an excuse to upload content to social media and short videos. That was the idea today: not to make a music video, but to create a montage of images that could be used on social media, with minimal playback and a lot of content that could grab attention. Besides, today’s song (which will give the album its name) is the most upbeat one I’ve ever made, and it calls for a bit more dynamism and fewer typical music videos with people lip-syncing in front of a wall.

I don’t know if we succeeded, but we tried. With two looks (one with a Wednesday Addams-style shirt and another with a sleeveless t-shirt and skeletons, more punk), you could say I’ve just been messing around a bit. Let’s see what happens. We also went back to a place that was legendary in my early music videos, Roma Park, where we filmed two versions of «Invítame A Volar» (Invite Me to Fly). Today I discovered that the place has less potential than I remembered.
As for the other single I re-recorded last week, I was debating whether to use the footage we shot a few months ago (which made me hesitate because I’m wearing crosses) or do a new one. But, since it’s getting harder and harder for me to go out and film (laziness mode on, ideas mode off), this morning I did a test with the footage we shot and the new version (which I don’t have the final mix for yet), and the playback works. That way I confirmed that both versions have the same tempo and the footage works. I’m considering using that footage, since I look pretty good in it, despite the crosses. Anyway, the crosses represent a huge stage of my life (and one I don’t know if it will ever return), and we shouldn’t deny who we are or who we’ve been. It’s very likely I’ll use them.

Now I have to decide whether this single will come first, or the one that will give the album its name. I’ll decide in the next few days, as my mind is elsewhere and I need to sort out some other ideas first…