In the latest episode of WeTransfer’s new series Work In Progress, Swedish indie-pop star Lykke Li provides an intimate look into her creative process and the life events that inspired her album so sad so sexy.
Li tells Work In Progress that the years between 2014’s I Never Learn and this year’s so sad so sexy were some of most difficult years of her life so far. Her mother passed away, she gave birth to her first child, and she suffered a devastating breakup. Writing and recording so sad so sexy was her way of processing these huge life changes, and she channels her grief, joy, and heartache into the music. “There’s nothing stronger than a broken woman trying to rebuild herself,” Li says. “In my life, I have turned my biggest heartaches into songs.”
Li’s mother, her biggest rock who had always supported her creatively, became sick just weeks after Li gave birth. All of that, all at once, left her reeling. “I had to change. I had to survive. I had to write. I had to turn my sadness to music.”
Like Li’s music, the episode is intimate and ethereal. Alongside her narration, there are bits of songs from Li’s new album, visuals of her walking through forests and other natural scenery, and fuzzy, dreamlike home videos. The episode is half music video, half documentary, and a perfect accompaniment to the honesty and vulnerability of so sad so sexy.
Watch Lykke Li’s episode of Work In Progress above.
