Mon Laferte is feeling invincible. After turning 40, growing comfortable in her motherhood, and reflecting on her unique journey to stardom, the Chilean singer-songwriter has tapped into a special moment in her creativity. It’s like she’s been reborn.
But Laferte would rather refer to her state of reinvention as “autopoiesis” — a term coined by Chilean biologists Francisco Varela and Humberto Maturana to describe the process of how cells auto-generate all the time. “The best example of this is when you get wounded and, in time, it heals,” the singer explains. This idea resonates so deeply with the Laferte that she named her ninth studio album Autopoiética.
Rolling Stone caught up with Laferte to talk about her new art exhibitions, her recent meeting with Lana Del Rey, and her most ambitious album yet.
Autopoiética is all about reinvention. But there also seems to be a constant theme of self-preservation in songs like “40 y MM” and “Los Amantes Suicidas.” Do you find self-preservation necessary for reinvention?
I like the idea of being “autopoietic,” of having the capacity all the time to recreate myself. I wrote the lyrics for “NO+SAD” and “Tenochtitlán” that speak of social judgment issues, topics I had not addressed in my songs before. I found a clip that said, “It doesn’t matter the rocks that are thrown my way. With those rocks, I will build my throne right, I will build my house with those rocks.”
In this era of reinvention and autopoiesis, how do you look back on past projects?
I try to not make the same mistakes. That’s where I think that autopoiesis is. I want to go further. One of my goals in life is to say more with fewer words. I feel [I did that with] “Te Juro Que Volvere.”
One of my most successful and iconic albums is Volume 1, but it is technically a terrible recording. I made it at home with only one microphone. But it has a lot of heart and that’s what made it successful. Today, I intend to make a blend of having heart, thought, with a brutal sound to accompany the experience.
What was happening in your life that forced you to create this eclectic, powerful album?
It’s a lot of different things that came together. Motherhood really changed my perspective on life. I don’t feel like writing about romantic love, because that’s not where I’m at at the moment. I’m not having many casual relationships. I’m much more calm. So what am I left with? I’m left with self-reflecting on my history, on who I am. My age is also influential. Once I turned 40, I felt invincible. I paid the price. Now I give myself permission to do whatever I want.
I found that’s a common thing that happens [as we age]. When we are young, we have many insecurities.
You know, that’s so true. It’s what happens to us women. We have so many societal expectations. We [have to] behave a certain way, speak a certain way, be a certain way. I am a mom now and [I get judged] that I haven’t lost my extra weight, that I’m not as beautiful. They always expect things from us.
There are still heart-wrenching tracks like “Te Juro Que Volveré.” In the past, you’ve said you used English to help with being vulnerable. Is that the same concept here with the auto-tuned vocals?
The theme of “Te Juro Que Volvere” is about immigration, but it’s also about failure. Even though [people] say, “She’s a successful artist,” it has been a slow path. I always think of people who have found success when they were 18 or 20. I feel it came to me when I turned 30, and I didn’t keep my promise to my grandma to bring her with me to Mexico. It’s not easy to accept. That’s why my voice is disguised. Somehow, it allows me to interpret this better.
There’s an Instagram video where you don’t have that voice effect. Will you also release that version with your original voice?
I don’t think so. In fact, I was meditating on putting a sound effect on my voice for a live performance. I’m not just a singer, the message is more important, and I feel as an artist I am going to use all that I have on hand to transmit it. I use my voice as an instrument, and that voice I can take to the limit, I can sing loud, acute, serious, whisper… and distort it.
From the song titles to the sounds and concepts of the album, it seems like you take inspiration from just about anywhere and everything. Tell me about the “obsessions” that influence your work?
Religious imagery is very interesting to me. There is so much beautiful symbolism, so there is a lot of it in my album. I had a book of poetry by Susana Thénon and a Bible next to that. I would open [them] and there are phrases in there that trigger creativity. There’s also a whole medley of music that inspired me to make the album. From opera [music] to Tego Calderón.
Can you tell me about the playful cover art?
I invited an artist by the name of Bárbara Sánchez-Kane to collaborate [with me]. She is someone I admire very much. I told her I wanted her to do whatever the album says to her. When I saw she put a face on the ass, I was like “I love this!” That’s what the album is, I am a face in the ass!
So it’s your face?
Yes, what’s so nice is that it’s not photoshopped. It’s an actual [pair of pants] that she made. She’s a textile artist, and she fashioned my face in the ass part. The photos are also very religious, like those illuminated paintings of [Diego] Velázquez.
You had your first art exhibit in 2020 and even showed a stunning collection this year at Centro Gabriela Mistral. How does it feel to go from creating oil-paintings in the green room on tour to hosting art exhibitions?
It was incredible to see my pieces like that. I’m very new at displaying my art, even though all my life I have dedicated time to painting, embroidery, and knitting. I feel like I’m in the diaper stage, like a little kid with this exhibit. In fact, today we are preparing an exhibit to go with the Autopoiética album.
What do you hope to achieve with your visual art?
I just want to share it, and if someone feels connected to it, that’s marvelous. There’s been so many times where I have gone to a museum and I’ve been moved to tears. If I can send a message to people that they can connect with, that would be super cool.
I saw you met Lana Del Rey when she performed in Mexico – like many Lana and Mon fans, I was so excited.
She was super sweet. I want to spend more time with her, to see what’s inside her head. That’s always interesting to me to know how someone creates. I loved the amount of memes that came out after our encounter. I especially liked one that said, “Three depressives staring at each other.”
Do you see any future collaborations?
That would be wonderful, but only if it happened organically.
In 2018, when asked to define success, you told Rolling Stone “something that brings you happiness because you worked for it.” Does that still ring true to you? Do you feel like this album is a culmination of all the boundaries you have worked hard to break?
This album is about breaking free of all the ties that bind. This album is about not holding back. That is how I define success: being free to create. I feel happy and successful to be a creative, 40-year-old woman who doesn’t have to follow any musical trend in order to be fashionable.
Sometimes it happens that people reach a certain age and they want to stay relevant, so they do whatever they feel they have to do to stay relevant. This does not exist for me. I feel I am aging gracefully, and for me, that’s success.