BENEE talks Creative Process, Influences, and New Album “Ur an Angel I’m Just Particles”

Singer songwriter BENEE’s highly anticipated sophomore album Ur An Angel I’m Just Particles reckons with the artist’s existential crisis in the wake of her move from New Zealand to Los Angeles. Pulling from a matured perspective, BENEE continues her genre-bending approach utilizing ethereal vocals, instrumentation, and collaborations to paint a transcendental narrative from obsession to breakdown to chaos to ascent. 

Sitting in on BENEE’s press conference, Group Chat Mag was able to gain insights into BENEE’s vision and creative process for the album. Deeply inspired by her move from New Zealand to Los Angeles, the album reflects how the move challenged BENEE both creatively and personally. 

We asked BENEE how Ur An Angel I’m Just Particles was influenced by place and location. 

BENEE reflected, “The crazy difference in New Zealand to LA I think was the biggest factor in changing what my art looked and sounded like, because there is nothing you don't see in LA. I think that I was kind of living in a bit of a bubble,” She continued, “...that world change was just so drastic and just watching how that changed me made me ask all these really big questions in life.”

BENEE cites the influence of LA, being shaken by the visible lack of access to resources while simultaneously being inspired by the diversity in the city, “I think that also probably did contribute to how existential I felt this year and the past few years…but also on the flip side, it is also a crazy place in that there are so many different people coming from all sorts of backgrounds, doing all sorts of things.” 

While initially overwhelmed by the endless collaborators in LA, BENEE delved into the power of collaboration, taking countless sessions with producers to refine her sound and vision. Producers ELVIRA and Luka Kloser from single Green Honda returned for the album, a rewarding collaboration for BENEE. 

BENEE continued, “We only made one track on the album together, but they are the only female producers I worked with…It is bad how uncommon it is to have woman producers in this industry…so, I think that working with them was so special in that way, because it was just a deeper level of comfort and relatability."

Informed by location, Ur An Angel I’m Just Particles is an exciting, existential edition to BENEE’s discography defining her as a remarkable voice in the indie pop genre.