Released in 2015, the Canadian pop artist’s third album developed a cult following that has lasted over a decade — and had an impact on Jepsen’s new album.
Carly Rae Jepsen’s newest album, Day and Night, is finally here — and it was partially inspired by one of her previous albums.
In 2015, the Canadian pop artist released her third album, Emotion. Created with an intimate group of famed producers including Shellback, Devonté Hynes and Ariel Rechtshaid, Emotion was an ode to ’80s synth-pop. The album received critical acclaim, becoming a cult classic among her listeners and brought in a new wave of fans.
Ahead of the release of Day and Night, Jepsen spoke about Emotion’s impact on her new double album.
“What I liked about Emotion that I wanted to repeat with this project was its cohesiveness,” Jepsen tells Billboard. “It was very focused in what its job was. We [were] doing ‘80s, passionate pop music, and we’re going to get into some feelings here and not be afraid to go there.”
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While she explains that Day and Night isn’t borrowing from a certain decade of music, the track uniformity — split between 12 tracks on each side — resembled her process on Emotion.
“I wanted a cohesive album that felt like it was really building a world. And that’s why day needed to be separated from night, because together I was really confused,” she admitted, laughing. “But separated, I felt like I understood what I was making.”
Emotion came three years after Kiss, a project that featured her monster hit “Call Me Maybe.”
The 2011 pop track was a major moment for Jepsen in 2012, a then-rising singer-songwriter from Mission, B.C. It was her debut entry and first No. 1 hit in the U.S., spending nine weeks at the top on the Billboard Hot 100 and four weeks at No. 1 in her home country on the Billboard Canadian Hot 100.
“I remember when ‘Call Me Maybe’ happened, I thought, I’d really love to be known for an album instead of a song,” she recently shared with Vogue. “Then Emotion happened and became its own mighty little thing. Seeing the love that people have for that album years later is still mind-boggling to me.”
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Following its release, Emotion reached No. 8 on the Billboard Canadian Albums chart. A year later, Jepsen released Emotion: Side B, whichfeatured eight cut tracks from its 2015 predecessor. It peaked at No. 55 on the Canadian Albums chart.
When reflecting on the response to Emotion in Vogue, Jepsen recalls that it helped her find community “and everything just became more fun. It took [away] a little bit of the fear of needing my music to be the biggest thing in the world, versus something that I’m excited about.”
Later in the interview, Jepsen discusses her involvement in the Broadway production of 10 Things I Hate About You, explaining that she was “all in” when she got the call from producer Mike Bosner. Jepsen will write the songs, while the book is written by Girls creator Lena Dunham and Jessica Huang.
“It was important for the book and songs to blend effortlessly," Jepsen says. "They really are a braided, beautiful thing. It doesn’t feel like they stop and we start. It’s a fluid conversation where sometimes the characters feel something so immensely that words are no longer enough and they need to bring it to melody.”
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Despite her passion for musical theatre, Jepsen explains that the songs wouldn’t fit on any of her albums, but she’s “very happy about that.”
“I’m sure I have my little mannerisms that I don’t even realize are there, but it’s a totally different energy from anything I’ve done before.”
