Elena Rose has stepped into a new chapter of her singer-songwriter career with the release of her debut album, “Bendito Verano” (“Holy Summer”).
“I’ve always had the dream to have, to write and to work on an album, almost to the point that it became a little bit of a nightmare because I had a lot of expectations,” the 30-year-old Venezuelan singer-songwriter tells TODAY.com. “I was pressuring myself a lot, and it wasn’t the moment for it, but I would keep (telling) myself, ‘It’s going to come and be awesome.’
“I just had no clue what it was going to be,” she adds, having now accomplished her dream with “Bendito Verano.”
An acclaimed Grammy and multi-Latin Grammy nominee, Elena Rose — whose given name is Andrea Elena Mangiamarchi — has penned hit songs for artists like Bad Bunny, even receiving a Grammy nod for her work on “Un Verano Sin Ti,” which became the first Spanish-language album to be nominated for album of the year.
Then there’s songwriting credits on Becky G’s “Mamiii” featuring Karol G, Jennifer Lopez and Maluma’s “Pa’ Ti,” “De Vuelta Pa’ La Vuelta” by Daddy Yankee and Marc Anthony, as well as hits with Selena Gomez, Rauw Alejandro and Christina Aguilera, among others.
When it came to her own album, Elena Rose was inspired by her love of summer, a “heavenly” playlist, an Italian getaway and most importantly, trusting her intuition.
The result was a deeply personal 12-track, genre-blending album that Elena Rose says made her “feel proud” — and “transcended music.”
The “first name that came to mind” for her creation was Holy Summer, which she translated to Spanish.
“Summer is my favorite time of the year,” she says. “When I think of summer, I think of a sunset, I think of the beach, I think of the breeze, I think of happiness. I think of dancing and just having a lot of moments where you’re like, ‘Wow, this place is beautiful. Wow. I love the people I’m with. Thank you, God, for my life. Thank you for the present.’”
Collaborations with Eladio Carrión, Beto Montenegro, Young Miko and Justin Quiles, as well as dreamy angelic music videos for each track, only enhanced her vision.
Below, Elena Rose breaks down “Bendito Verano,” the inspiration for her opening song “Mantra,” her upcoming tour and more.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Why was now the perfect time for ‘Bendito Verano,’ and what inspired it?
I think after (my 2024 song) “Me Lo Merezco” (“I Deserve It”) was born, I was like, “This is where I’m feeling the best,” because it transcended the music and it became more about the message and what it was doing in people’s lives.
It was that feeling of, “Look at everything we’ve gone through and we made it. We’re here at the beach, let’s just have fun and dance.” Mixing that feeling of what summer means to me and then asking the question of, “If there were to be a summer in heaven, what playlist would they play?”
Which is why we have sax, we have trumpets because I would picture angels performing in heaven. (I wanted this album) to help us remember the things that really matter … and it would be about love.
We have elements like Afro that make me feel freedom, that make me feel at peace, joy and be in the present. There’s a lot of roots feelings when I listen to a bass line, or when I listen to the drums that remind me that I come from amazing people that have done amazing things in order for me to be here.
But then I have my message, which is where I really come in and put like my little grain of salt. I speak about mental health and awareness and emotional responsibility and real and unconditional love.
Tell me about recording the album and putting it together?
We went to Italy to record all the visuals. Every song has a visual. The first time I went to Italy, it was right after I picked up my relationship with my father. We hadn’t spoken in like five years and my father is half Chilean, half Italian, but grew up in Venezuela.
My last name is Italian, and I had always wanted to go to Italy, and I’m grateful it happened right after we hugged it out. Visually, the woman that I saw in Italy was a woman hugging everything about where she comes from and who she is. (Someone) who never lost her essence, but really worked on the woman that she wants to be and who she wants to be for the world and her industry and her craft. I’m grateful to see that visually. I needed to see it. And in a place like Italy, in Lake Como, the first thing that I thought was, “If God wakes up in the morning and opens the window of his bedroom, this is the view.”
And then we recorded everything in Italy, aesthetically with this woman that you see vulnerability and innocence, but then you also see her strength and her resilience.
You open the album with ‘Mantra.’ What is the story behind the track?
The album opens up with a mantra that I wrote with my life coach that repeats, “I am, I am.” It’s just one minute. I want people to start the days like that. It’s how I start my days.
There’s also ‘SpreadLof — Andrea’s Interlude’ in the middle.
The interlude was my best friend. I asked him, “If you could describe the warrior of light, how would you describe her?”
And then it closes with a song that I wrote to my inner child. It begins with my mom and my grandmother singing. So it’s very, very intentional, just a big ball of love.
Which song would you say is your most vulnerable or one you were excited for fans to listen to?
I think every song has something like “Luna de Miel” (with Rawayana), to me, is the wedding song of the album. “La de Dios” is the moment to connect with the purest part of your heart, your inner child, and also to connect with God. It’s a reminder in a world that right now is in a lot of chaos.
“Aleluya!” tells you, love without fear. “Alma” tells you, look at everything that you’ve gone through. You’ve always had everything and if you lose whatever you have, you’re losing nothing.
“Amén Bebé,” you have a partner and you build something together, a best friend, a boyfriend, a dog, celebrate life. There’s a little bit of everything. I’m just grateful that I have an album that I think you can listen from beginning to end, and it’s gonna be an experience.
You will be going on tour at the end of November. What can fans expect?
I’m excited, happy. This is my first US tour. We’re going to be presenting the album. We’re preparing a very intimate show, which is how I like it. I’m hoping it’s gonna be way too long and people are gonna tell me, “You guys have to leave.” And we’re all gonna be like, “No!”
I’m excited to see my warriors of light. They’re everything to me. We feed each other and we exchange energy. We elevate each other, and I’m bringing now a work that I put all my heart and soul (into), and I can’t wait for you guys to listen to it.
