There are many students at the university who are interested in the arts, whether that be through music or through visual demonstrations. These students dedicate themselves to their craft to secure a chance at success in their desired industry.
Rosella Wu, a sophomore music major at the university, is no different.
Wu recently announced the release of her first album titled “perspective” on Nov. 1, 2024. She held an album release party the following Thursday, to celebrate the release with her friends and peers.
“Perspective” has 10 songs: “why i left,” “inside me,” “away from reality,” “one day,” “anything for you,” “don’t kiss and tell,” “nobody’s girl,” “good luck,” “tropical sunset” and “life goes on.”
Wu said all songs are meant to emulate “a range of emotions” she can express.
The idea for writing the album sparked during the pandemic when Wu was 17 years old with little to do to satiate her boredom. The project took three long years to complete.
“I was at a point during the pandemic [where] I had nothing to do and since I’ve already been trained in playing piano for almost 12 years, I always wanted to write my own songs,” said Wu.
“Perspective” is an album filled with strong themes related to relationships and internal struggles. Wu said her main inspiration for writing came from not only herself, but from stories she heard from others, including stories of break-ups and how to cope with them afterward.
Wu also said listening to the radio and hearing songs “that kept telling the same experiences over and over” was something she aspired to do, but with a new twist in perspective, one that other artists do not write about often.
“I was wanting to write what it’s like to be someone who initiated it instead, which is why I wrote ‘why i left,’ ” said Wu.
A lot of the song writing is done by Wu herself, but taking a deeper dive into concepts like social media comments helps with the type of storytelling Wu wants to incorporate into her music.
“[I also look at] the influence of many other bigger factors, like the meaning of life,” said Wu.
On her Instagram, Wu explained the significance of the album cover design– two girls with different colored dresses pressed against each other, back-to-back, with their arms intertwined.
“The girls you see in the picture are both me, just two different moods disguised as princesses,” said Wu.
The girl with the pink dress is meant to signify emotions like happiness, serenity, pleasure and laughter, while the girl with the black dress represents sadness, anger, fear and disgust.
Wu said she dreams of becoming a voice for people who come from similar backgrounds as her. She also wants to break boundaries within the music industry.
“I want to get discovered more, not only as an artist, but as a person of color,” said Wu, who is Chinese-American.
A few projects Wu is currently working on include an EP titled “Child’s Play,” which acts as a letter to Wu’s childhood self, as well as a second full album titled “Espionage.”“Perspective” is available to stream on Spotify and Apple Music. Students can follow Wu’s Instagram for updates on her upcoming projects.
