Clara Quilichini
Clara Quilichini opens up about “Tiny Girl, Big Feelings,” exploring emotional intensity, vulnerability, sensitivity, and the deeply personal journey behind her upcoming debut album.
1. “Tiny Girl, Big Feelings” captures the experience of having an enormous emotional world inside a small human body. What personal moment or feeling first sparked the song?
This song came from feeling a big emotional gap between me and someone else, and not knowing how to bridge it. Although we were dealing with the same situation, my overwhelming emotional wave was met with a calm ocean. It’s this specific contrast that I wanted to capture.
2. You wrote the song on the edge of your bed on a difficult day. How did transforming that vulnerable moment into music change the way you understood what you were feeling?
Writing songs to me is kind of like taking a photo of a feeling. Putting words on paper helps me step outside of myself for a second and look at the picture from the outside. Stepping back from this particular situation helped me understand that maybe feeling things intensely didn’t mean I was doomed, but deeply alive, and caring a lot.
3. The song explores emotional mismatch in a relationship, particularly the frustration of needing words when a hug isn’t enough. How important was it for you to express that distinction honestly?
This song isn’t about placing any blame, but rather about highlighting different ways we communicate, and how different our needs can sometimes be. The hug line refers to the five love languages, and to how at times we expect things that wouldn’t necessarily satisfy someone else’s needs.
4. Despite its themes of overthinking, dread, and emotional overwhelm, the song ultimately becomes a celebration of sensitivity and emotional complexity. When did you realize that these feelings could be a source of strength rather than something to hide?
I think the first realization I came to was that many of my friends often felt that way, and yet I always see them as strong and brave.
Sensitivity can be portrayed as a weakness, but on the contrary, I believe being sensitive means listening to the signals our emotional and nervous systems give us, guiding us towards what’s good for us. I strongly believe that being able to listen to and express our emotions is a beautiful strength, and that it should be celebrated.
5. The warm folk-pop production gives the song an intimate, comforting quality while the lyrics deal with heavier emotions. How did you approach balancing vulnerability with that sense of warmth and playfulness?
When I write a song, I’m often in the middle of feeling all of the emotions, and as you now know, they are not tiny. That’s why I always like to come back to it later, from another point of view, when things are a little quieter. Working on the production with other artists allows me to do that even more, and to see my songs as pieces of art rather than as pieces of me.
I wanted this song to feel like a hug for anyone who’s ever been told, or told themselves, that they feel too much. I aimed for it to be uplifting and to celebrate vulnerability; and the beautiful sonic quality brought by Stéphane Corbin -my arranger- and our band, gives the song the warm and comforting feeling I wanted to achieve.
6. “Tiny Girl, Big Feelings” is the second single from your debut album, arriving October 23rd. What can listeners expect from the album, and how does this song represent the larger emotional world you’ve created?
« Tiny Girl, Big Feelings » could’ve been the title track of the album, because all of the songs on it came from an inner sensation I felt the need to externalize. So I guess you can expect giant feelings, but also some daydreaming, a touch of irony, lots of layered backing vocals, beautiful strings arrangements, and a whole lot of heart 🙂