Episode
Ep. 253: Nessa Barrett on Fame, Music, and Finding Herself in Public
- Published
- Jun 16, 2026
- Duration seconds
- 5083
- Processing state
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- https://shows.acast.com/andthewriteris/episodes/nessa
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Summary
Today's guest built an audience of millions before she was old enough to sign a record deal, turned a 30-minute crying freestyle into her debut single, and made one of Gen Z's defining breakup anthems out of a phrase that became its own internet language. But her real story isn't the viral fame or the streams. It's the part that plays like a runaway and teaches like a masterclass: how she left home at 17 to chase music, what it costs to become a person in public, and everything about the business nobody explains until you've already survived it. And The Writer Is... Nessa Barrett! In this episode of And The Writer Is, we go deep on: • Why she ran away from home at 17 — a 4AM ticket, six school bags, cops on her trail — to make music • The truth about "i hope ur miserable until ur dead": she didn't write it, it's not her favorite, and why she sang it anyway • "pain" — the 30-minute freestyle she cried through in the booth that became her first single • Why she can't record with Auto-Tune — and what she learned the first time someone handed her a finished song to cut • Signing to Warner Records on Zoom during Covid — and the messy contract she had to escape first • "All of my confidence comes from my fans" — the performer who still gets embarrassed easily • The childhood trauma and the generational cycle she says she's trying to break • Why she closes her eyes every time she records, and writes a song like she's building a movie • The lowest point of her career — and how prayer, faith, and going back to her core brought her out of it • "I've never loved my music as much as this — and I didn't know it could feel this way" And much more... 🔓 Want in the room? We just launched our Patreon — monthly Zoom hangs where we listen to your demos and give feedback, hang with you di…