For a long time, I didn’t think the muse could be me.
I thought the muses were the girls with all the glitz and glamour. The ones on the front of the magazines. The girl in the songs that all the rappers talked about.
Not the girl with her pen, a spiral notebook and a radio. Not the girl who struggled with the fear of perception.
But, when I wrote my fourth single, “How We Do,” it created a shift in me.
It’s crazy to think that the line which shaped my entire brand identity—and inspired the name of this Muse Letter you’re reading now—almost didn’t make the final cut. At the time, it was something that I wanted to say, but didn’t feel like I had earned yet.
“You see you’re the perfect muse.”
I remember recording one of the first demos of this track at my friend Lucid Luunar’s apartment in Tallahassee. When I got to that line in the song, I paused. It was a declaration that felt too bold for 20-year-old me, who felt like she didn’t have the track record to back it up. Too certain.
Lucid looked at me and said, “Nah, don’t overthink it. Say that.”
And I’m so glad I listened. Little did he know that moment created an internal shift in me, now accepting that even through my imperfections I could be the muse of my own story.
That one line gave life to this entire movement: the Muse Letter, my Muse Starter Kit, and truthfully, the version of me that you see today. Not the girl who was too shy to say what she wanted, so she wrote her thoughts in a notebook, but the one with a name, a vision and a voice.
I didn't find the muse, I became her... one lyric at a time.
But, that’s only one part of the story, because “How We Do” isn’t just about me.
It’s about the people in my inner circle. The muses who inspire me with their relentless ambition, simply by existing in their excellence.
My best friend Kelley was just accepted into her top doctoral programs this year and is well on her way to becoming a Ph.D. certified scientist. Next year, my homegirl Maya is graduating with her master’s degree in entomology. It always gave brains and beauty.
And my homeboy? He’ll have his law degree by the time he turns 22. If that’s not muse energy, then tell me what is.
In writing this song, I realized that I was always surrounded by muses. A generation of young Black visionaries, who are building, growing, studying and becoming icons in their own right.
So when I said, “You see you’re the perfect muse,” I meant exactly that.
For me. For them. For all the dreamers reading this right now.
We are the muses. Not because we’re flawless—but because we show up.
And now that I see the muse in me? I’ll never let her go.
Tell me: When did you realize you were the muse?
Until next time…
Another Page in the Digital Diary.
Fantastic letter!