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Lucy Dacus\u2019<\/a>Lucy Dacus\u2019<\/a> music has always had an underlying vulnerability \u2014 even her first hit \u201cNight Shift\u201d started with the tangible description of pushing yourself to move on after a relationship (i.e. \u201cThe first time I tasted somebody else\u2019s spit I had a coughing fit.\u201d) Still, the characters in her previous releases \u2014 like 2018\u2019s Historian<\/em><\/em> and 2021\u2019s Home Video<\/em><\/em> \u2014 stayed on the page, like past chapters of a past life, studied from a place of hindsight, somewhat healed, perspective 20\/20.<\/p>\n But with Forever Is a Feeling<\/em><\/em>, released this March, Dacus gets right into the thick of it, sharing portions of her story in real time. \u201cI feel like I\u2019m getting closer to the heart,\u201d she says of her latest release. \u201cWhich is cool in one way, but it\u2019s also more sensitive. I need to figure out how to feel differently because sometimes I wonder, \u2018Why did I share all of this?\u2019 It\u2019s precious to me. But it\u2019s probably worth it, ultimately. Sometimes it\u2019s also kind of embarrassing, though, how much I\u2019ve given away to complete strangers.\u2019\u201d She\u2019s facetiming with PAPER<\/em><\/em>, as she walks across streets in Manhattan, dodging traffic, but leaning into questions. Much like Forever Is a Feeling<\/em><\/em>, and its deluxe companion, which was released earlier this month \u2014 her answers are approachable and profound, casual life-changing epiphanies, the kind Dacus has been dropping since the launch of her career: You don\u2019t need to be a perfectionist when it comes to baring your soul,\u201d she shares at one point. \u201cYes. 100% yes,\u201d she says later when I ask if she really believes <\/strong>that PAPER’s most recent cover star Janelle Mon\u00e1e<\/a><\/em>most recent cover star Janelle Mon\u00e1e<\/a> actually time-traveled to see David Bowie. <\/p>\n Forever is Feeling: The Archives<\/em><\/em> features unreleased tracks from Dacus like \u201cLosing,\u201d a cover of Jim Croce\u2019s \u201cTime In A Bottle\u201d as well as a new matrimony-laced version of \u201cBest Guess,\u201d and a live recording of her \u201cBulleseye\u201d duet with Hozier.<\/p>\n Dacus knew she was going to release a companion to her album even before it was finished. \u201cI was like, \u2018If I want to hear another version of this, I\u2019ll just do it on the [companion album]\u2019\u201d she says. \u201cLike \u2018Best Guess,\u2019 doing it acoustic. I had always wondered if it was going to be nice more stripped down and it totally is. But I like the original album version, too. And for \u2018Lost Time,\u2019 I kept writing lyrics and I was like, \u2018Maybe I\u2019ll just hold those over time during the tour.\u2019 I wrote 20 more lines to that song.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n But back to the original release, it\u2019s lush in fantasy romance, the kind you drum up in your brain when you\u2019re in beyond deep \u2014 \u201dpull me by the ankles to the edge of the bed,\u201d she smiles in \u201cAnkles,\u201d \u201cYou may not be an angel, but you are my girl,\u201d she attest in \u201cBest Guess,\u201d \u201cYou\u2019re a big deal,\u201d she reiterate in \u201cBig Deal.\u201d It\u2019s delicious and playful and warm and true, the type of lyricism that deserves an encore, which is why the deluxe makes perfect sense.<\/p>\n Below, we chat with Dacus about officiating queer weddings on Jimmy Kimmel Live<\/em>, and why she believes Janelle Mon\u00e1e met Bowie.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
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