'It's Just Straight-Up How I Felt'

Acclaimed singer-songwriter Lucy Dacus returns with a new solo album—her first since enjoying major success with boygenius

- DAVID CHIU

THE INDIE ROCK SINGER-SONGWRITER LUCY Dacus had already forged a successful career before the release of 2023's The Record, the album she made as a member of the supergroup boygenius along with Julien Baker and Phoebe Bridgers. When it came out, The Record kickstarted a whirlwind period for boygenius that saw them play to large crowds at major venues and later win three Grammy Awards. The overwhelmingly positive reaction to the album at the time—including praise from Taylor Swift—truly surprised the group members, including Dacus herself.

“We liked The Record when we made it,” Dacus tells Newsweek. “We were like, ‘Oh, hell yeah. People are going to love this.’ But we had no idea of the scope. And maybe [it’s] proof that we're not power hungry. You would not believe the things that we have said ‘no’ to.... But then I [still] have to remember, ‘No, this is a really unique life.”

Even with boygenius now on hiatus after its only full-length album, Dacus’ popularity is poised to grow further with her latest solo album, the exquisite and shimmering Forever Is a Feeling—one of 2025's most anticipated music releases. Whereas her previous album, 2021’s Home Video, was a reflection on her upbringing in Richmond, Virginia, Forever Is a Feeling is a document of where Dacus is now in her life. Thematically, the new record tackles such subjects as sex, love and relationships in a more open and frank manner than her previous releases.

“The good thing about Home Video is I feel kind of past that,” she says. “I’m not obsessed with the stories of my past. What really interests me right now is my present moment. It’s primarily about love and what love means and how it functions in my life and society.”