The singer-songwriter opened up about making her debut album independently, the stories behind “Unethical,” “Don’t Ever Leave Me,” and “Birthday,” and the biggest lesson she learned from the “Film Noir” era.

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A few months ago, my twin sister sent me a link to "Unethical" with a very simple message: "You NEED to listen to this song." Within seconds, I understood why she'd sent it to me. The sheer emotion of "Unethical" blew me away, and I immediately put on Faouzia's debut album, Film Noir.

Film Noir is exactly what the title promises: dark, dramatic, cinematic, and deeply personal. However, that darkness came from a particularly difficult period in the singer-songwriter's life. After being dropped by her label, Faouzia trusted her instincts and saw the opportunity to create the body of work she'd always wanted.

Now, Faouzia is celebrating one year of “Unethical,” the deluxe edition of Film Noir, and her current tour. We sat down after her Outside Lands set to discuss creating her debut album independently, the songwriting process behind some of its most striking tracks, and the biggest lesson she's learned from this era.

Faouzia: When I started writing the album, I knew exactly what I wanted to say. Thematically, I knew it would definitely be darker. It was going to be more dramatic and cinematic, so I chose the title Film Noir. I knew the music would sound like the soundtrack to the dark film that was my life at the time.

I started writing a month or two after I got dropped from my label. I took that as a sign to hit the ground running. All I ever wanted was to release a body of work and build a world visually and sonically around that — so I wrote Film Noir in the span of a few months and then released it into the world.

It all fell into place at the time because I had so much to write about. I was feeling so inspired, and I decided to follow my intuition and my gut on what I wanted to say.

Faouzia: It's honestly a little bit different every time. When I'm having conversations in my day-to-day life, or sometimes when I'm driving or showering, a random idea pops into my head. Whether that's a concept or a melody, I'll record it and save it for later.

Sometimes I'll circle back to it and use it when I'm in the studio. When I'm in the studio and I start writing, I normally start with melodies. My favorite way to write is to kind of curl up in a ball, zone out, and just start singing whatever comes out. When I do that, some words poke out and peek through, and they're kind of waving their hand, telling me, "This is what you need to write about today. This is what needs to be conceptualized today." 

And if it isn't that easy, I'll go through my notes and see what I've been wanting to write about, or see any ideas that I haven't touched on, and build around those.

Faouzia: I knew, and I didn't know. When I wrote that song, I was as honest as I could be. I decided to have no filter, and I was thinking, "I'm just gonna lay it all out on the table. Whether people like it or not, this is me."

When I finished the song, I knew that it was impactful to me. I thought, "I really believe this song is special, but if nothing happens, that's all right because it was a healing moment. If it resonates, that's even better."

I didn't know just how impactful it would be. When a song is written, it's written about something, but then the second it leaves your hands, you don't know how people will interpret it. Reading everyone's stories and seeing how it's been healing for them, too, has been beautiful.

Faouzia: "Don't Ever Leave Me" was actually the hardest song to complete. The song's skeleton and chorus were done very quickly, but I rewrote the verses multiple times. I was like, "What am I trying to say?" I didn't know what the story was until, finally, it clicked melodically. 

The vocal chops you hear in the instrumental are a mixture of me singing the repeated melody in the studio. The producer that I worked with, Arthur [Besna], chopped it up a little bit, so it sounds very hypnotic and trancey. 

This song was a fun one, but it was definitely the hardest to complete and get over the finish line.

Faouzia: I was really on the floor for most of that album. After having put out an album with such heavy topics, "Birthday" was me realizing that I'm going to be all right. I'm going to pick myself back up, like, "Girl, get off the floor!" 

I was hoping that people would see it as a sliver of light at the end of the tunnel. It is still delicate, it is still vulnerable — but it has a moment where my chin is up, finally, after many years.

Faouzia: I've been singing my entire life. I think I've been singing longer than I've been speaking. I think I was between 6 and 8 years old the moment that I realized I could sing.

I remember performing at a local talent show. Grown adults came up to me crying, and they were really impacted by the song that I had written. I remember being like, "Wait, why are they crying?" I saw that happen time and time again. 

I started thinking, "Maybe I can actually sing. Maybe what I'm doing isn't just a fun little hobby. It's something that I can do as a career."

Faouzia: I've been very specific about my routine on this tour because, on the last tour, I don't think I took very good care of my health and my voice. This time around, I am going on vocal rest after almost every single show. If I have two days off, I'll do vocal rest on one day. If I only have one day off, I'll just be completely mute all day.

I have a vocal coach that I'm working with. His name is Ivan, and he will FaceTime me even at crazy hours, Italy time, to help me right before a show. I was afraid of vocal fatigue, so he designed an exercise program around that because I had never had vocal training before. It's been such a big help. 

I also take care of myself through what I eat. I'm very strict with my diet when I am about to sing. It's not a happy diet, but it helps with the vocal cords. I take it very seriously, and I'm glad that it's been keeping me going thus far.

Faouzia: I think every song has its own special moment. "Ornament" feels like a fun time with the fans, where I can really connect with the crowd. "Unethical" started to shine even more while touring and seeing people connect with it in real time. 

Another fun one is "Peace & Violence," which is both a crowd moment and a vocal fave to sing and perform. Performing that song is really fun — it's very cheeky, and the crowd gets illuminated during that song. I love getting to see all their outfits and what everybody's wearing. 

Faouzia: I've learned a lot of things, but what's jumping to the forefront of my mind is that I can trust myself. I can trust my vision, and even when you think you've hit rock bottom, you can always build yourself back up. 

I hope I don't have to hit rock bottom to build myself back up every single time, but it shows that you can tear everything down and start anew. 

You just have to trust yourself. I've done it once, and I believe that I can do it again.

Follow Faouzia on Instagram, @faouzia, and find tickets to her upcoming Film Noir tour dates here. 

Note: This interview was edited for length and clarity.