Rina Sawayama says she was in a "serious creative block" for new album after not being able to tour

In a new interview with NET-A-PORTER'S PORTER Magazine, Rina Sawayama discussed her upcoming album Hold The Girl, and how Taylor Swift's Folklore and Elizabeth Gilbert's Big Magic: How to Live a Creative Life, and Let Go of Your Fear helped her get over a creative block.

"I was in a serious creative block because I hadn’t toured the first album and I just had to crack on with making the second," Sawayama said. "Second albums are great when you've toured a lot with your first. You know what people enjoy dancing to. By performing it, you understand what you want to do with music. And when that’s gone, it’s like there’s no compass…"

On how Swift's Folklore helped her break out of the block, Sawayama said, "The fact that she was literally able to construct an entire album out of stories… it just showed me that, as a songwriter, you need to get better."

She added of Gilbert's book, "[It] sounds really Eat Pray Love, but it was so important in unblocking me – incorporating the fear of creating into the creating."

Sawayama also praised Charli XCX for helping her become more in control of her artistry, "The more I work, and the more I meet other artists, I realise that they are so in control of what they do. When I meet people like Charli, and we chat about music – Charli makes every single decision; she really does. And that’s allowed me to be more in control of what I do, and to have my own boundaries."