Rob Aguiar: You’ve often characterized music as a form of “therapy.” How do you decide which parts of your personal narrative are ready to be shared on record, and does that process ever feel daunting?
Rose Cora Perry: I wouldn’t say I actively “decide”. My inspiration strikes often without warning and at very inconvenient times while I’m trying to sleep. LOL. It simply comes down to how I’m feeling and processing life’s various ups and downs.
But with that said, songwriting for me has always been about sharing my journey authentically in a way to be relatable to others, just as the musicians who inspire me have done so.
You never know who might find a piece of themselves in your music and how that in itself could help them get through a personal struggle. That is why I do what I do: because words and music are so incredibly powerful.
RA: Your 2025 release, “Excuses,” delves into the patterns of human behavior. Given your ongoing commitment to resilience, does that song take on a new resonance for you now as you speak out about domestic violence?
RCP: That song was actually written about a very toxic partnership in which I felt trapped and because of the circumstances surrounding that, I had to veil parts of the lyrics out of self-preservation.
At the time, I wrote it as an act of ‘private defiance’ but now with the Warrior Women Concert Series underway, it feels more like an anthem of strength and empowerment for others.