Immunity

I wanted to write about things that I had never talked about, never told a lot of my friends. […] A lot of artists don’t necessarily feel like they need to be a role model, they don’t feel the need to listen to who is listening to them. Sometimes I wish I did that, because it’s hard to let so many voices in. But I also feel really good about taking on that responsibility, and offering support for people, treating them like a younger sibling. If I could be anything to these kids, it’s an older sibling. […] [The title Immunity is] about the capacity I’ve found to turn negative experiences and feelings into something positive. I’m honoring the sad songs that need to be felt, and the happy songs that need to be felt.

— Clairo via PAPER

The album title is supposed to have a double meaning with my rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disease, but then also […] being immune to the things that make you weak or make you sad. It was a big deal for me to talk about all the things that I went through and how I got through them, to make sure that I tell everyone that’s listening to my own music that it gets better. I got it [Immunity] tattooed so…

– Clairo for Go Radio

My mom is my absolute best friend. She and I have been close my whole life and I couldn’t be more grateful to have a person like her in my life.
She was the reason I put the children’s choir on the album (most notably on closing track “I Wouldn’t Ask You”). When I was younger I would vent to her about how I didn’t like myself and how I wish I was different, and after hearing all the negative comments, my mom told me something that became really important to me – she told me that if I were faced with the nine-year-old version of myself and told her all of that, I’d make her cry. It completely changed the way I felt about myself and even how I spoke about other people.
I wanted to bring a bunch of nine year olds into the studio and hear them sing, not only to resemble the things my mom told me, but to express the helplessness I felt when dealing with arthritis, (and represent the) voices I wanted to hear when I was first feeling emotions for women.
Going back to the children on the record, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was also vital in my decision to include them. The way the children are placed in her album (a class of neighbourhood kids feature in “Intro” and at various intervals across the album) is probably one of the best things I’ve ever heard – it’s so casual and in the moment, it feels like you’re there with them. It doesn’t feel orchestrated, and it just has this natural approach that’s so positive and sweet it makes you smile without even noticing. Children are so special and are able to see the world in ways that we can’t, so to hear their perspective and let them have a voice was really important for me on Immunity.

– Clairo, Dazed

• Spanish Translation