P!nk is the pop-star that never sleeps. While balancing a growing family with husband Carey Hart, contributing to the soundtrack for The Greatest Showman, and touring internationally in support of her seventh studio album Beautiful Trauma, she somehow found the time to knock out one more creative venture. Hurts 2B Human - the "Walk Me Home" singer's eighth studio album - has arrived. 1043MYfm's Valentine from Valentine In The Morning brought a handful of Los Angeles listeners to the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood and was provided exclusive access to chat with Pink about the album.
Don't expect to hear another song about getting the party started from Pink - she's done with that. Instead of hitting the town after laying down a track in the studio, she's heading home to son Jameson (2) and daughter Willow (7). She shared with Valentine that authenticity is incredibly important to her current artistic process; doing anything otherwise is simply non-negotiable.
Here's the thing, I am at a point in my life where I have two children, I'm on tour, I have to really be thoughtful about the things that I do. And so if I'm gonna do something, it has to be a hundred percent authentic and it has to feel necessary. And so that's what I write about. I'm not a person that's gonna go into the studio, unfortunately I think for some people, and be like, "Let's write a song about the club!"
This attitude towards authenticity is precisely what keeps Pink's fans so engaged and she knows it. She feels it important to reflect personal experiences through lyrics because that's what allows individuals of all backgrounds to find a commonality and relate. The human experience is universal.
It doesn't matter where you're from or what you look like or how much money you have or, what you do with your time. We're all putting one foot in front of the other trying to figure it out...And that's, that's what it is. That's what poetry is, that's what writing is, that's what journaling is, that's what songwriting is. This is my experience, and I'm sure somebody else is gonna be able to relate to it.
When it came to settling on a name for the record, it was selected based on the track that resonated with her most. It's how she picks all her album titles. The process of naming a project can be frustrating for the "Funhouse" artist however, as she never sticks to one solitary sound or theme
I always name an album after a song that, and I try to find the one that encompasses ... or just resonates the most with me. Um, either where I'm at or where I think the world is at, or usually where I'm at. I'm very narcissistic when it comes to writing and creating, but um. Yeah, the problem is, I never do one kind of music I never do one kind of thing
The album's title track "Hurts 2B Human," a collaboration with pop artist Khalid, celebrates human emotion and also expresses how painful the human experience can be. Although people often like to talk about the "beautiful bits" of life, Pink drew upon the "painful" sides of her role as a daughter, mother and wife to compose the song.
As you get older, your parents get older, that's incredibly painful to experience. And being a mother sometimes is incredibly painful….Everyone likes to talk about the beautiful bits but, being a wife can be incredibly painful. But also, the point of that song was, but I've got you.
The role of mother to Jameson and Willow is one Pink holds with pride. She revealed to Valentine that she loves motherhood and her favorite parts about having little ones are receiving "cuddles" and being able to watch them experience what life has to offer for the first time.
I didn't think I could make a girl because I'm such a tomboy and my husband is such a boy. And then, watching her grow up a little bit from a baby and watching her be a girl that's never been hurt, never had her heart broken, never been told anything about anything. Just free, just free and that was so healing for me to watch.
Remember Pink's famous speech about her daughter at the 2017 MTV Video Music Awards? After Willow was called ugly in school, Pink used it as an opportunity to share with her the importance of self-acceptance and the fact the beauty comes in all different forms. She hilariously revealed that although it made headlines and was played back on her Beautiful Trauma World Tour during a costume change, her daughter's still not convinced.
I had that moment on MTV where I talked about the conversation we had about how she thought she was ugly and bla, bla, bla. And we play that during the show for one of the outfit changes and it's a really sweet moment but, a couple of times she has said to me, hey Momma, you know that thing that everybody thinks you taught me? Well it didn't work...I'm like, what? She's like, yeah I think what I still think, you didn't help me. I'm like, okay, thanks babe.
Khalid isn't the only notable collaborator featured on the album, Pink also worked with Sia, Chris Stapleton and more to complete the 13 songs on the track list. Stapleton happens to be a personal favorite of the "U + Ur Hand" singer, as she revealed his music is often her first choice to play when arriving home from work.They met in Las Vegas at the iHeartRadio Music Awards last year where Pink proposed they work on a song together.
In Vegas is where I met him actually. I was like, Ahhh! I love you, I love you, I love you! We should write a song together!
Pink's album "Hurts 2B Human" is available to stream on the iHeartRadio app. Listen to her full interview with Valentine below.
Photo: Courtesy of RCA Records