Interview with Hope Tala: How “Hope Handwritten” Captures Grief and Healing
In a world that moves too fast, Hope Tala slows down to write by hand. “Hope Handwritten,” her new album, is exactly that: an act of emotional resistance and deep introspection. Written over a transformative three-and-a-half-year period, the record unfolds like an open journal. Each song is a mirror, sometimes uncomfortable, sometimes comforting, reflecting the internal journeys we all face when trying to understand who we are.
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Blending soul, R&B, and touches of bossa nova, Hope Tala doesn’t chase genres; she follows honesty. In this interview, Hope opens up about vulnerability, the mystery of turning pain into art, and the privilege of being embraced by a kind and nonjudgmental audience.
“Hope Handwritten” is described as a deeply personal poetic narrative centered on hope and self-reflection. Can you share the journey behind the album’s creation and what inspired you to write so candidly by hand?
I wrote the album over a really formative three-and-a-half-year period in which I experienced a lot of change. Those changes forced me to be more reflective in my writing, more vulnerable—I used these songs to process everything that was happening, basically. I’ve always used writing as a processing tool, but this sort of internal battle with myself that began in my mid-twenties started to come out in this music. The subject got a bit more complicated, maybe.
From your first releases to now, how has your songwriting evolved, and what do you feel has stayed the same?
I’m not sure how qualified I am to speak about how the songs themselves have changed, but I can talk about how my process and feelings about songwriting have changed.
I suppose I overthink a lot more and put way more pressure on myself than I used to, which is something I’ve been trying to quell. What’s stayed the same is my commitment to the craft, my love and respect for it, and my hope that songwriting will continue to change, shape, and make the human being I am, that the songs I write might help someone else, somehow.
In “I Can’t Even Cry,” there’s a heavy sense of vulnerability. It talks about knowing you’re losing a war but forgetting what you were even fighting for, questioning if it’s love or something else. What inspired you to write this song, and how did you manage to turn such a paralyzing feeling into art?
It’s quite hard to remember—I wrote it so long ago. I wrote that song in December 2021—it feels like a different lifetime. Like many of the songs on this album, that song was created from a very despairing place. It’s hard to speak to how I manage to turn any feeling into art, really, the alchemy of writing is a mystery to me—I just try to approach each writing experience with authenticity and hope.
Which track from this album do you feel represents you the most right now?
This is a great question. Probably track 1, ‘Growing Pains (Prologue)’. I recently lost someone who has been hugely important in my life, so I’ve been going through a lot of grief and change—that song definitely speaks to those experiences.
You’ve described “Hope Handwritten” as a kind of open letter. Were you afraid to share so many personal emotions with the public?
I really wasn’t. I experience fear around releasing music for many other reasons, but not ever because of lyrical content, from what I can remember at least. I also don’t really think about my listenership as ‘the public’—obviously, I’m not in control of who finds my music, and I wouldn’t want to be, but I find that the people who my music reaches are typically very generous, kind, and non-judgmental. I’ve been really lucky, up to this point, to have been received with such care by the people who choose to engage with my art—long may that continue.
The album blends soul, R&B, and even bossa nova. How did you build that diverse musical collage? Was it a conscious decision or something that happened organically?
It was definitely a very organic process—sonically, I’ve always let myself be pulled towards whatever feels right. With this album, the conscious through-line was pursuing an organic, live sound, for the most part.
After opening for ZAYN in North America, you’re now hitting the road with Halsey. What can fans expect from the upcoming live shows?
I just try to be myself up there. It’s been really fun performing some of the new songs, both on my first proper headline tour this year, which continues in the UK and Europe in November, and also the opening slots, which I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to do.
Looking ahead, what do you hope this album will leave behind for listeners, especially those who are also navigating their own search for hope?
I always say that I want people to take whatever they need from my music. I don’t want to impose or project onto anyone’s listening experience, other than just to hope they might make some use of the songs for themselves.
Find “Hope Handwritten” on all streaming platforms and connect with Hope on Instagram
