Some villagers in the region

AP Photo/Chris PizzelloMcRae was in the process of making this album, and the snippet she shared felt separate from the narrative she was constructing. Despite an onslaught of comments from listeners asking for the full song, she considered leaving it unreleased or tabling it for much later.

Then she got a huge cosign. “Whenposted about it, I was like, well, you forced my hand,” McRae laughs. “So then I changed course.”The solution, she realized, was that “Massachusetts” — a song about the specific memories that don’t leave you when a relationship ends — would be the conclusion to the album’s story. Cook kept the song’s production minimal, centering McRae’s vocals and acoustic guitar. “Every rhythm just reinforces that,” he said. “This whole record, I would say, is a lesson in getting out of the way of the song as much as you’re reinforcing it.”

McRae hasn’t been able to diagnose exactly why fans online are drawn to certain songs like “Massachusetts” over others. Cook says it’s the same amorphous quality that drives all good music: honesty. “I think that the beauty of authenticity is it’s just so powerful that you don’t know why,” he said.In any case, McRae has worked to keep her brushes with internet fame from swaying her creative process. “Every decision I’m making about this is like, ‘Do I want this?’ And ‘Is this going to be a good move for my career?’” she said. “Because eventually, no matter what I do, the viral moment passes.”

But fans’ reactions have helped her recognize what makes her deeply personal songs relatable — especially as she, too, considers the project with fresh ears and new perspective ahead of an upcoming tour.

“When you’re going through something difficult, intellectually, you know you’re not the first person to whom it’s happened. But it feels that way,” McRae said. “Revisiting it now — one or two or three years after having written the song — I have an appreciation for how, like, of course people are going to have these songs resonate with them. Because of course I’m not the only person who’s gone through these feelings.”STING: No one calls me by my real name.

SHAGGY: Really? Well, that’s my new name for you. I’m going to start calling you that, Gordon (laughs as Sting sticks his tongue out playfully). My wife calls me Orville.STING: Only when you’re in trouble. (laughs)

Shaggy poses for a portrait on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Matt Licari/Invision/AP)Shaggy poses for a portrait on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, in New York. (Photo by Matt Licari/Invision/AP)