MCO Studios is a quiet, woodsy space tucked away in the leafy neighborhood of Anzures in Mexico City. With its sky-high ceilings and the bursting trees on the patio, it’s a site that reflects the beauty of the Mexican capital, and singers Leon Bridges and Natalia Lafourcade are immediately at peace when they arrive here one bright afternoon in August.
It could be because both of them have been finding endless inspiration in Mexico City. Lafourcade was born here, and in the past several years, she’s made albums like the two-part Musas projects and 2022’s De Todas las Flores, digging into folk sounds from her hometown and the rest of Latin America. Bridges is a more recent arrival; after releasing three acclaimed, soul– and R&B-inspired LPs, he found himself in need of a change of scenery. The Fort Worth, Texas, native decided to come to Mexico, where he recorded this year’s Leon.
Though they celebrate heritage in different ways, each of their journeys has taken them here, where they are meeting for the first time. Sitting in the studio, they start off talking about their shared love of mezcal. From there, they quickly realize how many similarities they share, from their passion for classic eras to their love of guitars. By the end, they’ve both shared some of their most intimate songs, singing to each other. Bridges shyly dives into “Blue Mesas,” Lafourcade’s favorite song of his, and Lafourcade ends their conversation with a stunning rendition of the Mexican classic “Cucurrucucú Paloma.”
It could be because both of them have been finding endless inspiration in Mexico City. Lafourcade was born here, and in the past several years, she’s made albums like the two-part Musas projects and 2022’s De Todas las Flores, digging into folk sounds from her hometown and the rest of Latin America. Bridges is a more recent arrival; after releasing three acclaimed, soul– and R&B-inspired LPs, he found himself in need of a change of scenery. The Fort Worth, Texas, native decided to come to Mexico, where he recorded this year’s Leon.
Though they celebrate heritage in different ways, each of their journeys has taken them here, where they are meeting for the first time. Sitting in the studio, they start off talking about their shared love of mezcal. From there, they quickly realize how many similarities they share, from their passion for classic eras to their love of guitars. By the end, they’ve both shared some of their most intimate songs, singing to each other. Bridges shyly dives into “Blue Mesas,” Lafourcade’s favorite song of his, and Lafourcade ends their conversation with a stunning rendition of the Mexican classic “Cucurrucucú Paloma.”
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MusicTranscript
00:00I've really been digging your song. How do you pronounce it? Muertes?
00:04Muerte. Muerte.
00:06Muerte.
00:19Mezcal over tequila.
00:21Mezcal over tequila?
00:23Yeah.
00:24Yeah, for me too.
00:25Mezcal on the rocks, a little tajin on the rim.
00:28Yeah.
00:29I guess some people don't like the smokiness of mezcal.
00:31Yeah, and I love it. And I love it. And I don't know why, I am Mexican and very intense,
00:38but I don't know why tequila just never, I never got the same relation as mezcal.
00:45And mezcal is a good companion.
00:47When did you drink it the first time? Was it in Mexico or was it outside?
00:52How come you know mezcal?
00:54Yeah, well, I mean, I'm from Texas, you know.
00:58Yeah.
00:59We like to drink mezcal out there, but I had some friends that kind of put me on to it.
01:03Yeah, that's good. Good. Well, I am so happy to be here with you.
01:08Man, it's an honor.
01:10It's an honor for me, for me as well.
01:12The vibe has been seamless, you know, smooth so far.
01:16Yeah, the way you've been doing music, you know, since long ago.
01:22Man, it's kind of surreal that I've been doing this for 10 years now.
01:2710 years?
01:28I mean, still a baby, you know.
01:29How old are you?
01:30I'm 35.
01:3135? I thought you were older.
01:34Yeah.
01:35I mean, you seem to be an old soul for me.
01:41Man.
01:42How is it like for you? Like, how do you feel after those 10 years?
01:46Man, I'm so blessed.
01:50This is going to be your fourth.
01:52Yeah, my fourth one. Yeah, so blessed and grateful just for, you know, how my trajectory has kind of panned out, you know.
02:00Like, my way into it was kind of fortuitous.
02:03Like, I never really expected for my music to connect.
02:07There was a moment when I was working on this album called Coming Home, and we put it out on SoundCloud.
02:14Yeah.
02:15It resonated with a lot of people, and I'm grateful that I just kind of have a lane, you know, in the industry.
02:22There's moments where I feel like I'm not able to keep up with how fast things are going, and, you know, I want to be somewhat of a recluse and just chill.
02:33Yeah.
02:34Do you feel like sometimes everything goes really fast, like faster than you could, like, take it?
02:41Yeah.
02:42I normally feel that way.
02:44Yeah.
02:45It's like, oof, I don't get enough time.
02:47Right.
02:48Because it's not the same as in the beginning, right?
02:50There's not so many, let's say, responsibilities.
02:54What inspired you to pick up a guitar?
02:57The guitar?
02:58Mm-hmm.
02:59The first time I took the guitar, I was 14 years old, and we were living in an apartment, but we had a robbery in the house, and we had to leave the house, my mother and I.
03:14And we went to this other apartment that my aunt was lending to us, and I was very curious to see what was inside the closet.
03:23And so I opened, and there was a nylon classic guitar with three strings.
03:29And I took it, and I didn't know how to play, of course, but I always liked to improvise with music and any instrument, just to grab it and play anything and sing on top.
03:43So I was just trying to do songs with those three chords.
03:47Wow.
03:48That was my very, very first approach.
03:50And then I was just by myself, learning with friends through the years.
03:56Still, I have so much to learn, but it's my...
04:00It's the same.
04:01I still know what I'm doing.
04:02How about you?
04:03Yeah, so when I was in college, I initially pursued dance.
04:08I wanted to be a choreographer.
04:11Oh, you were going to be a choreographer?
04:13Yeah.
04:14You were in dance school?
04:15Yeah, yeah.
04:16I started out doing hip-hop choreography and then learned ballet and jazz and modern dance.
04:24But kind of in my downtime, I met these musicians who we get together and do these little jam sessions.
04:31And doing that just kind of sparked my love for playing guitar.
04:34And one of my friends showed me A minor and E minor on the guitar, and I would just kind of strum that and try to write songs.
04:44With those two chords.
04:45Yeah.
04:46Yeah, that was the same for me.
04:48That's the R&B, you know, blues sound.
04:50Is there like a specific era you try to, I guess, implement in your music?
04:56When I listen to your songs, it kind of gives me this kind of 1940s, 50s vibe.
05:01Ah, okay.
05:02I think that's something we both could probably have in common, right?
05:07The love for music from the past.
05:10I don't know why.
05:11Like, I just feel like I am not from this era.
05:15And I was just coming at this time.
05:18But, like, my soul is like, I love the music from the past so much.
05:24And I don't know.
05:26I like the sound.
05:27I like the spirit.
05:28I like the classic thing, you know?
05:31It's very transcendent.
05:32I love it.
05:33Yeah, so I always try to pay attention a lot to what is the spirit of it.
05:41And not get into the middle of that, you know?
05:44But I had a moment in my career when I was trying to be more modern.
05:51Or maybe more in the, como se dice, la tendencia, trendy.
05:56You know what I mean?
05:58To be more like what everyone else was doing.
06:02And then I learned that I wasn't really happy, like, doing and trying that way.
06:08So it took me a while.
06:10Because I think the last years for me has been more about, oh, no, this is what I like.
06:17Yeah, I have a similar, you know, kind of experience.
06:21Like, when I first started, I was, like, immediately pigeonholed.
06:25And so I think that inspired me to, I guess, reinvent myself.
06:30And, you know, I wanted to showcase my influences other than soul music.
06:34Because I grew up on, like, 90s and 2000s R&B.
06:38And, you know, I kind of noticed that some of that stuff, like, overproduced stuff, didn't really translate well live.
06:45Which has kind of inspired me to kind of take it back to that simplicity on my forthcoming album, Beyond.
06:52And this is all about getting back to my roots.
06:56And it's really like a reflection of home.
06:59And did you feel like this way at the very, very beginning?
07:03Were you having, like, this feeling of going into your roots, your culture, to bring in those kind of things from the very, very beginning?
07:11Did you feel like that?
07:12You know, my father, he would play Stevie Wonder.
07:15And my mother, she was really into Sade.
07:18And so I guess when I picked up a guitar, I kind of saw there was, like, a missing hole in music.
07:25And just really loved soul music and wanted to, like, honor my heritage, you know, by, like, making that kind of music.
07:32But telling my own stories.
07:34Yeah.
07:35I don't know how you feel about it, but I think you're very lucky that you started at a point that you were older, probably.
07:43Because your music feels like I can see the sound, the influences, and the way, like, you're grabbing new things.
07:52But everything seems to be, like, in a line.
07:57How do you feel about that?
07:59How do you find that sound?
08:01I wanted to push the envelope, but the only way that it would, I guess, connect is if it's just keeping the foundation of it soulfully.
08:12So, like, all of my albums kind of have a different outfit, but, like, the core of it is still me.
08:18It's still the same.
08:19Mm-hmm.
08:20That's great.
08:21But this next one, I'm really excited about.
08:24How do you feel about this next one coming?
08:27Man, I'm stoked.
08:29Do you feel nervous? Do you feel, like, you go through all the feelings, I guess. We all do.
08:36Yeah, yeah. I am a little nervous, but I'm pretty confident that this one's going to connect.
08:45I mean, we were working in L.A. and Nashville and got burnt out on those places, and so that's what kind of inspired us to come to Mexico City.
08:54I think it was a perfect place to really bring this home.
08:58The first album I released, I was 18 years old.
09:03And I can see how I had, like, 10 years, probably even more, of, like, doing a lot of things, but not really grabbing my own route, my personal route, you know.
09:16Like, I think that's hard to find that.
09:20Like, I think when you're maybe more in your 25, 27, 30 years, like, you start, like, feeling, for me, was like, oh, okay, this is it.
09:33I feel more myself and my voice.
09:35Absolutely.
09:36Man, I'm, like, honored to, you know, share the same space as you.
09:42It's a nice space, right?
09:43Oh, man.
09:44How was it, the process of the album?
09:47Did you normally get a lot into the studio?
09:50We started working on some of these songs, like, five years ago.
09:54Yeah.
09:55And I kind of put everything on the back burner because I felt that the songs were too vulnerable.
10:05And, you know, just had to listen to my intuition, you know, just, like, this is what the world needs.
10:13I love it because it's, like, kind of a gumbo of sounds, you know, but still embodies that Texas vibe, embodies Fort Worth.
10:24I have gone through similar things, like, having the music.
10:30Like, now I am working on an album that has music from the past, like, two or three songs, songs that didn't fit.
10:40I was, like, no, this is not really the mood of this album.
10:44Right, for sure.
10:45And I just feel like they're telling me, like, no, no, no, this is not my time.
10:50How do you...
10:51Yeah, that's the kind of crazy part about the process is that, like, you write so many songs and then, you know, just having to, like, condense everything down to, like, a ten song album is kind of tough.
11:04How did you write?
11:06Man, for me, it kind of starts with me just kind of strumming on guitar.
11:12And, like, I was, like, trying to sing a melody, like, kind of incoherently.
11:17And a lot of times, like, the concept can be an afterthought or, you know, there's moments where I go into it, like, knowing exactly what I want to write about.
11:30Like, a lot of these stories, like, the stories on this album are personal to me.
11:35But I love that it encompasses just, like, the human experience, you know.
11:40Yeah.
11:41How do you feel with that relation between your audience and the way you give them music?
11:49Like, what do you feel about that relation?
11:53I love the whole process.
11:55But, yeah, being able to perform, you know, from inception to, like, being able to perform everything live, you know, being on the stage is, like, my sanctuary, you know.
12:07And I love, like, in the crowd and, like, everybody singing the song word for word is such a powerful moment.
12:15It's such a blessing to experience.
12:18You have this connection, this complicity with people, and we love it so much.
12:23Like, we're very fortunate.
12:25You said you've been doing this for 20 plus?
12:29Yeah, almost 25 years career, but not yet.
12:32I think about, like, the 25 years, and there has been so many times I am just about to, you know, to say, like, I'm not doing this anymore.
12:41Like, I can't keep going.
12:43Like, this is just, it's too much.
12:46It's a lot.
12:48Sometimes I feel like that.
12:50Then I realize that the music is a gift, and there's possibility to make this important connection to people and people's lives.
13:00And you feel like, I wish I could give something to this crazy world we live in.
13:08And then music is the one.
13:11You know, like, music for me is just, like, the one who knows, the one who leads my direction, my energy, my, yeah, like, everything makes sense.
13:23So, yeah, almost 25 years.
13:26So, in your whole time of doing it, what's the thing you're most proud of?
13:30I think it makes me proud.
13:35There are many, many, many things, because it's a lot, right?
13:39Like, first, your own relation with music.
13:42I feel proud about that, because even when I am very unsecure, I feel very proud about the relation with music that I have,
13:50because she's a lot like my mother, like my teacher.
13:56Like, I feel like that with her.
13:58And then I feel proud about the relation with the audience.
14:02And also the fact that I am Mexican, and I can go to many countries and sing in Spanish, and sing the songs that I love from my roots, you know, from my culture.
14:16And there's people from Latin America, from Mexico.
14:20They miss their house, their families, their hometown.
14:26And for me, it's like bringing a little of that, you know, to those people.
14:32So, I feel proud about that.
14:34Man, I've hit so many milestones.
14:39From where I'm from in Fort Worth, like, hip-hop music is the thing.
14:43And I think it's, from what I've heard from other people, of just how inspiring it was to them to see, like, a young black dude playing guitar and pursuing something different.
14:55That is so gratifying.
14:57So, what's your songwriting process?
15:00I have different ways.
15:05Sometimes I feel very inspired.
15:08I feel like I can wake up, and I have an idea, and it seems to be very clear.
15:13Then there's moments I feel about, like, I want to write about this specific thing, but I don't know how to, and how to sing about this matter.
15:24Honestly, I love just writing without matching the words.
15:32I just write whatever I want to say.
15:36Sometimes I grab the guitar, and I improvise.
15:42And I get into a song, and I get into a mood, and eventually something happens.
15:49I love that.
15:50Sometimes sticking to, like, a formula can be kind of, like, trying to rhyme can be limiting a little bit.
15:56Yeah.
15:57What's your favorite moment when writing?
15:59Yeah, for me...
16:00What part of the process?
16:02I don't know.
16:03It's therapy, you know?
16:04Mm-hmm.
16:05I mean, because a lot of times, like, you know, I'm, like, writing, like, in a studio.
16:09And sometimes, like, what kind of opens it up for me is just kind of going out into nature and just kind of seeing what that sparks.
16:18On this most recent project, Leon, it was kind of nice to kind of bring to the table just, like, some of my guitar did leads and kind of song ideas that I had been kind of, like, working on, but just, like, just kind of got stuck and never finished.
16:33Yeah.
16:34Okay, there is a song I have in this last album, which is called Death.
16:40We were recording all the songs on a tape machine all together, the band, and we were all together.
16:47And it felt very organic, all the songs, but especially this one.
16:51It felt like she didn't like me.
16:55I felt like I was being very stupid and superficial the way I was doing it.
17:03Like, I felt like I went to bed at night and we did, like, eight takes or something like that.
17:10Another one, another one.
17:12And I couldn't just, like, fit my singing voice into the song.
17:17And I felt terrible.
17:19I really felt like she was telling me, like, I don't like this album.
17:22I don't like you.
17:23I don't like anything.
17:25And I was just, like, I don't know what to do with this because I am trying to sing so beautifully about death.
17:33But then the day after, I was with my friend, the producer, and I was telling him, like,
17:38hey, I just had this feeling that she was telling me not to sing.
17:43But I sang.
17:44I am the singer of the band.
17:46Like, what am I supposed to do?
17:48And then he was saying, like, well, then don't sing.
17:53Just tell it.
17:54Tell it.
17:55Tell the song as if it was a story or something and see how you feel.
18:00So then we went again into the studio.
18:03And I was just saying the words, like,
18:06Le doy gracias a la muerte por enseñarme a vivir.
18:10Después de morir mi guerra, hoy renazco agradecida.
18:14After I die, my own war, I am reborn, say, gratefully, no?
18:20I can not just sing.
18:23I actually can talk.
18:25Lyrics on top of music, just a poetry, right?
18:28And that was the way we put it.
18:31We left it that way.
18:34There is this beautiful song you have at the end of your last album, Blue Mesa.
18:41How did that song come to you?
18:45Yeah, so that song, it's kind of about, like,
18:50just kind of, like, on your way to the top of just, like,
18:54how you can still feel isolated and lonely being around people that you love.
18:59Yeah.
19:00And it was really healing just, like, getting it out to the world, you know?
19:06And I call it, like, lineage music, you know?
19:08It's, like, just pulling from that well.
19:11It's, like, very rooted, you know?
19:13Yeah.
19:14And, yeah, I mean, that's one of my favorites.
19:17It's one of my favorites of yours.
19:21Also, like, I think it, I don't know.
19:23When I listen to it, I feel like it comes from a different place.
19:28Like, the music, the scale, it has a lot of this pentatonic thing.
19:34Absolutely.
19:35Which gives you, I don't know.
19:39I feel like from the Andes or from the earth that comes from the mountain,
19:46like, from the spirits from the nature or something like that.
19:50That's the way I felt the arrangement.
19:53And then the lyrics, I felt like, yeah, it has this meaning that we all share.
19:59Yeah, that vibe.
20:00I would say that was just written in the stars.
20:03Yeah.
20:04It's always been there, you know?
20:06Yeah.
20:07I wanna look at you.
20:10Yeah.
20:11Sing a little.
20:13About?
20:14You remember.
20:15There ain't no peace at the top.
20:18I don't know how much air I got.
20:21I will never get used to this.
20:27What it's saying.
20:29And don't nobody check with me.
20:32It's a slow way to go all alone.
20:37So good.
21:02Yeah, beautiful.
21:04Yeah.
21:05Beautiful.
21:06I love that one.
21:08I've really been digging your song.
21:10What is it?
21:11How do you pronounce it?
21:13Muertes?
21:14Muerte.
21:15Muerte.
21:16Muerte.
21:20Muerte.
21:21So how did that song come about?
21:24I wanted to write about this part of the process, the healing process that we all have.
21:33Life is cycles, and you will go through this moment.
21:37Even though you might be like, no, I don't wanna go.
21:40I don't want it to happen.
21:42But there might be something in your life that will make huge changes in your person
21:50and in your soul and your heart and will make you grow and learn things.
21:56So I wanted to write and say thanks to that, because I am alive thanks to that.
22:04Thanks to struggling.
22:06Thanks to going to this dark side that you need to explore this part of yourself.
22:16Instead of saying, oh, I'm so scared of that.
22:20Instead of saying, no, I take your hand.
22:24And life comes with the companion, which is the opposite.
22:30Do you know David Byrne?
22:33Yeah, from Talking Heads?
22:36Talking Heads.
22:37Yeah, totally.
22:38The day I released the album, De Todas Las Flores, I was able to play this live in Carnegie Hall.
22:45And David Byrne came to the stage to sing that song together.
22:50Oh, my God.
22:51So he made a version in English of the lyrics.
22:55Oh, that's right.
22:56And he was coming to the stage, and he was just like praying.
23:00So much history there.
23:01Yeah.
23:02I know, right?
23:03Have you played there?
23:04No, I haven't.
23:05You should.
23:06That would be crazy.
23:07How come you haven't played?
23:09You should.
23:10Maybe, yeah.
23:11I guess it's an opportunity to present yourself.
23:13It's a celebration of more music.
23:43How he suffered for her, that even in death he was calling her.
24:14That's so beautiful.
24:18How are you able to do that with your voice?
24:20That is definitely challenging some ancestors.
24:24Cuckoo, cuckoo, cuckoo.