Maeta on The Joe Budden Podcast — leaving Roc Nation, going independent and three unreleased songs

1:00 Catching up, and "F**k Friend"

• The hosts meant to catch her Blue Note show, but it was in Los Angeles, not New York.
• They have been talking about When I Hear Your Name for more than a year; for Maeta, this visit was a long time coming.
• "F**k Friend" comes from a messier period: she would notice the friends of whoever she was seeing, though nothing ever happened.
• One host discovers the live version of the album, which Maeta still considers the best thing she has made.

5:50 2024, the year everything changed

• The album, Roc Nation, opening for Chris Brown, then her own dates in Australia, London and Tokyo: everything was working, yet she felt she was not on the right path.
• On the flight home, her manager collapsed as the plane was landing and died shortly after. She speaks about it with restraint, out of respect for his family.
• At the same time she was leaving Roc Nation, which she says was moving toward distribution; getting out took about a year and a half.
• She feels no pressure to top that album, which will be there whatever happens.

8:30 "Decimate": the same Maeta?

• The episode title comes from her answer when asked whether her music will now sound more at peace.
• Her next single will be "Decimate", a sex song she has been teasing for years and that fans keep asking for.
• She has hundreds of songs in the vault and still works with the same people: no complete change of direction.
• She worried a healthy relationship would make her too comfortable; she calls herself still a little "toxic", but has never cheated.
• She wants her voice to shine more: signed at 18, she begged to sing and sometimes felt controlled.
• Her next songs may be more painful, in the spirit of "Through The Night".

13:45 Leaving a label

• She begged her team to put music out to keep the momentum, but the situation was out of her hands.
• It was her first time handling legal matters on her own, without knowing who to trust.
• What she took from it: the people you trust are not your family, and life is fragile.
• She is now independent, working with Human Re Sources (J. Erving's company) and a new manager, without some thirty people above her.

16:45 Coming back: lead with the hit, or build momentum first?

• Choosing the songs and the right moment weighs on her comeback and has delayed her next release.
• She puts her direct bond with fans ahead of industry approval, and she is tired of teasing.
• A year ago, Troy Carter reassured her that one hit can change everything.
• Today she has let go, and says she is happy with the people around her.
• Outside the studio: shopping, a passion for perfume, wine and the Silver Lake neighborhood in Los Angeles.

21:40 Image, sexuality and the industry

• Since she was 15, she was taught to lean on her sexuality to get ahead; she is unlearning that, without judging women who make that choice.
• At 18 she was a naive tomboy from Indiana, and she is still grateful for the artist development she received.
• Her first project, Do Not Disturb, dates from that time.
• She admits an insecurity about being seen as a whispery R&B singer; the hosts answer that the album proved otherwise.

25:05 Her writers

• Her bonds with her writers survived her exit from Roc Nation.
• She still works with James Fauntleroy, with whom she has recent unreleased songs, and with Absolutely, RAYE's younger sister.
• After a year of trial sessions that led nowhere much, she wants to work with people who genuinely back her.

26:50 Growing up in Indiana

• A public high school of about 5,000 students, a "hippie" mother and a landscaper father who passed on his love of nature and bugs.
• She describes herself as a bit of a dork and deeply philosophical, sometimes waking up at night wondering why we are here.
• She will not move back to Indiana, which she finds too closed-minded; she pictures herself in Italy instead, with horses.
• Her dog Arlo is with her on set.

34:00 Comparisons and the state of R&B

• She does not like being compared to artists who cannot really sing.
• She loves Sabrina Claudio, whom she has been compared to, and sees Jhené Aiko as the reference for her generation's "whisper" style, after Sade.
• The hosts miss R&B singers "begging" in their songs; they mention Leon Thomas and Giveon.
• Her ideal male singer: less leather and oiled-up torsos, more of Frank Ocean's artistry, and she hopes for a new Frank Ocean album.

44:00 Money, kids and the big questions

• Money would not make her quit music: she would be bored.
• She wants children, but the state of the world worries her.
• Raised Christian, she is as anxious about eternity as about the idea of no longer existing.
• She finds death beautiful, as part of nature's cycle, believes in reincarnation and is fascinated by theories about aliens.

51:40 Keeping fans engaged

• She imagines fan events built around her passions, such as perfume.
• She has been teasing the same song since the 2024 Chris Brown tour and admits she is losing patience; the hosts ask J. Erving on air for an EP.
• On stage, she sometimes joins The Free Nationals, as far as Korea, but wants her own shows, including a Blue Note date in New York.

55:15 AI in music, and her audience

• She turns the AI question back on the hosts: for them, AI will not fill venues, and audiences connect with artists' stories.
• Her audience mixes R&B lovers in their forties with younger fans; few teenagers, since her lyrics are not made for them.

1:00:50 Three unreleased songs

• She plays "Decimate", "Superstar" and "Hide", which nobody had heard before.
• The hosts hear an evolution: three different songs that would still belong on the same album.
• "Hide" stands apart and reminds them of Radiohead or Evanescence.

1:07:40 After she leaves

• Maeta leaves the set; the rest of the episode is the hosts discussing other news.