Bruses reflects on Latin Grammy nominations, new music, and her artistic journey

Hailing from Mexico, Bruses is an artist known for her “New Alternative Pop” sound. With singles like “Bestia” and “I’m So Happy,” she continues to push boundaries and address important topics that resonate deeply with listeners and fans. This year, she was nominated for Best Pop/Rock Song at the Latin Grammys for her powerful track “Señorita Revolución.”

While in Miami, Bruses sat down with Quip Magazine to share insights about her music, life, and artistry.

Sarah Ruiz: How are you doing? 

Bruses: It’s pretty cool to be breathing, you know? It’s a summer day. This is my third time in Miami, and my favourite thing about this city are the wild animals. I love them so much. 

SR: How does it feel to be nominated for a Latin Grammy this year? 

B: It feels wild. I don’t even know why they did it, but I appreciate it. I thank the  Recording Academy – I love this. It’s just wild because I’ve been writing songs since I was ten. It’s basically all I’ve known and all I’ve ever wanted to do in my entire life. Writing is just like, it’s cliche, but it’s like breathing.  I’m really thankful and happy. My favourite part about being nominated is that I get to come and visit these cities just like Miami, that I usually would never visit because I’m from Tijuana.

SR: Let’s talk about getting signed with RCA records …

B: I just got signed to RCA this year. It just happened this year in April. I’m producing my album with them. They’re my label and it’s like everything, my life’s changed. I’ve been going to LA a lot now. I’ve been living in hotels and this is the first time that this kind of lifestyle happens to me and I’m getting used to not being home. 

SR: You recently released “I’m So Happy,” and the lyrics touch on influencers becoming artists while other talented people don’t receive the same attention. What was it like addressing that in your song?

B: There’s two kinds of creators, in my head: the ones who want to get on the music train, just because they want to make money, be more relevant or become famous, and then, there are musicians who use social media to promote in creative ways. I’m a nerd, so I have studied, and I know how to tell when someone’s being real and someone’s being kind of fake. Or when a label is signing influencers who have never written a song in their life.

It’s okay, I get it, you want to make money. You are going to put a bunch of awesome, incredible, well-respected producers and writers and just give the songs to whoever you just signed. Hopefully, teach them how to sing and create a brand. I have respect for creators/influencers who wanted to be musicians but didn’t know how, so they became creators, but they have a music background. That’s a different kind of story. 

There’s a lot of musicians out there that are so talented and looking for opportunities, and you’re going to give the opportunities to someone who doesn’t care at all. Someone who just wants the glamour – that’s not really real, it’s all a part of the plastic world.=

SR: That kind of leads into the topic of mental health …

B: I feel like, and I’m not just saying this for myself,  but we need more artists that are just straightforward. When I was younger, I needed an artist who was real. Can you imagine if anything like Bruses, or whatever was just out there in the media saying, “It’s okay that you have these mental illnesses. You can dress like this and that’s fine?” As a ten-year-old, I needed to hear that, in order to feel like I was okay. 

That’s one of the hardest things when you’re a little kid. You’re like “Wait, am I different – but in a bad way? That loneliness can be deadly. That’s what Bruses has become now and I’m so proud of it and I’m never gonna let anyone touch it. This is Bruses. This is my baby. This is my creation and those kids need to hear this. I’m not gonna let them down and I’m not gonna be singing about things that I don’t believe in. 

SR: I really admire the songs “Bestia” with Humbe and “Movie” with Gale. How did those collaborations come about?

B: For example, with Gale, I think someone introduced me to her and we went for drinks and had dinner. Then there was this beautiful moment where we were just listening to songs like Hannah Montana and Avril Lavigne. We were laughing and having the best time. That was the moment that I was like “Okay dude, we need to write a song right now,” and we wrote the song that day. We were having that moment – we were just having so much fun.

Humbe was different because we’ve known each other for a long time. We kind of met before the pandemic or during the pandemic, so it was really weird because we were like online friends. We both kind of used TikTok as a platform to promote our music. Even though our backgrounds are different, we somehow connected, with like mental shit and we became friends. I remember it was kind of the same. We had a lot of hangs, and then I went to his house in Monterrey. We were playing video games and eating chicken wings and we were like, “You know, I think it’s a moment.” That day we were like, “We should really write a song together”.  He was like, “Yeah, I feel it too” and we wrote the song that day. So I think in both cases, we both had to feel it for the song to feel real.

SR: What other goals do you have for your career? 

B: I want to buy my mom a car and a house. I know that’s money-related, but I really want to do that before she dies. She’s not that old. I’m being dramatic. But I really want to film it. Everybody wants to do that for their parents. I really wanna tour. I love touring. Making videos or directing music videos, it’s one of my favourite things as well as writing music. I also want to be selling out arenas.  

SR: Any future projects, shows, or anything that you are able to share? 

B: Well, I’m finishing my second album. I’m really excited. “I’m So Happy”  is the first single from it. It’s so different from my past album. I love a pop/ rock moment. Obviously, we’re gonna have pop/rock moments in my second album, but it’s so different. Most of this is still me, but I feel like this is more me in general. I’m experimenting with a lot more new sounds. It’s more electronic. It’s stronger. It’s chaotic. It’s all over the place. 

It talks about something really sensitive that happened. I had a car accident and it’s been seven years now. I basically died and went into a coma. I never knew how to tell this story because it’s so dramatic, so I try to make fun of it, even though it wasn’t fun. I went to a coma and that was such a trip –  being a coma. It’s going to be my coma in music form, and all the things that I was thinking, going through and hearing.

So, it’s a super chaotic album, but it also has sensitive points and very vulnerable moments – musically and lyrically. It’s one of the things that I’m most proud of.  I’m still being super raw and super honest. I’m proud of my baby and I cannot wait for it to come out.