I am SO EXCITED to once again be catching up with Record Label Owner & Award-Winning Singer/Songwriter Rachael Sage. Rachael and I last spoke in 2024 as her companion acoustic album, Another Side, was being released.

Now, Rachael is hitting the road again, and getting ready to release a new album in 2025! While the release date for Rachael's new album, Canopy, is under lock & key, you can get a sampling if you go to one of Rachael's upcoming shows.

In this NEW interview, Rachael once again answered my call, but this time around she shares:

• How she keeps her energy up to avoid burnout
• What should excite fans about her upcoming show at The Bitter End
• How writing her new song, "Canopy," helped Rachael find peace amongst the chaos
• Why the US is not ready for a woman president
• So much more

Connect with Rachael: Website, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube

New Yorker's will get a sneak peek at Rachael's new album when she performs at Neo-Folk Extravaganza  at NYC's historic venue, The Bitter End, on Thursday, April 10, 2025. What makes this show even more exciting, is that Rachael will be performing with one of her friends and colleagues, Singer/Songwriter Jess Klein. Click here for tickets!

Rachael's new album, Canopy, will be released later this year or early 2026, with the title track coming out on May 9, 2025!

1. It seems like you have been going full steam ahead since our last interview in 2024. You toured the world in support of your album Another Side, created new artwork, started working on your next album, Canopy, and now you are back out on the road previewing it to some very lucky audiences. How do you keep your energy up and running so you don't get burnt out? Well, the truth is – since we've known each other a while now, and your readers also deserve some reality amidst the glitter and boas – I do get burnt out!

I go and go constantly and then at some point my body just says "hell no" and my immune system grinds to a screeching halt. It doesn't happen often because I try to be as healthy as possible by eating well, moving as much as I can and generally keeping stress under control, but recently for instance I woke up one day in the studio and I'd somehow suddenly gotten laryngitis. It was a big bummer and I had to cancel a few sessions and a trip to Austin...but the silver lining was I finally got a chance to fully rest, do some painting, and just be internal.

I was put on strict vocal rest by my ENT and didn't say a word for a whole week, which for a loquacious Scorpio like me is no easy task. So you've hit a nerve; it turns out I am human after all!

I probably need a "sponsor" to remind me to take vitamins, get off the computer, and go to sleep before 5am because I'm apparently addicted to being awake and creative at all hours of the night.

Let me know if the position appeals to you haha...

2. One stop on this new tour is on Thursday, April 10 at NYC's historic Bitter End. The evening is entitled, Neo-Folk Extravaganza, which will feature sets by both you and Singer/Songwriter Jess Klein. How did this co-billing come to be? I've known Jess for many years, as a fan and peer, but we've rarely shared a stage together for whatever reason.

Last year I heard her perform at Folk Alliance Conference and she just blew me away completely. Her writing is incredibly thoughtful and her soulfulness and compassionate character shine through her songs so brilliantly.

After we reconnected she interviewed me for her fabulous podcast, and then started chatting about doing some shows together because while our musical styles are quite different, we share a similar sensibility as individuals and just really enjoy each other's music.

Hopefully this will be the first of many performances we do together!

3. What should excite fans about this special night at the Bitter End? It's always fun for me to play my hometown and to be returning to The Bitter End is a particular thrill, and a huge honor. I got my start at The Bitter End in my early 20's, and Jess has a history at the venue as well so we're both really looking forward to revisiting old stomping grounds, so to speak, and sharing a stage together.

There'll be serious songs and fun songs and an overall mood of reflection, but also of uplift and hope. Playing live music is a lifeline to both of us and we're so grateful to be able to express ourselves and share our artistry together, as friends, in the great NYC!

It's also very exciting to be playing The Bitter End for the first time with my full band, The Sequins!!

4. Since this new tour is a preview of your next album, Canopy, how do you decide which songs you want to showcase? I don't really decide! I just try to be as comfortable with the repertoire as possible and then I genuinely make those split-decisions on stage, getting the vibe off of the crowd and the way I feel in the moment.

My band is always so on-point and prepared, and it's such a luxury and a beautiful feeling to know that whatever I decide to perform that night, they've got my back. I usually write down all the songs we could possibly do – way too many – and then pull from those so it could be between 20-25 songs and then we do 10 or 11 from the current repertoire and I'll rotate them from night to night to keep things fresh.

No matter what, I'm sure I'll play the song "Canopy" for this show, and another new one called "Just Enough" that's sort of a jam-band style groove tune that really showcases my violinist and harmonica players' improv abilities, as well as our harmonies.

Another new song, "Live It Up", is a perfect Spring/Summer invitation to optimism that I'll probably play because I think we could all use a little more of that at the moment!!

Beyond that, you'll just have to show up to find out...

5. How do you figure out which venues you want to play on this preview tour as compared to after the album is released? I don't really think about booking venues in that segmented a way to be honest. I "go where the love is" and perhaps we reach out to one venue we really want to play at and they reply immediately, whereas another may take months to hear from. We know everyone is wildly busy and there's often no real rhyme or reason why certain clubs may say "yes" off the bat whereas others may require longer lead-times to fit us into their calendars.

As far as the UK, the opportunity arose some months ago to do a headline tour of some very lovely folk-style listening rooms and I thought it would be the perfect way to introduce the new material, and to shed it a bit live before the album comes out.

Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez

6. While the album does not have an exact release date yet, is there a chance this preview tour could influence which songs end up on the final copy? I do have a release date! But I'm just not quite ready to announce it yet. Patience, grasshopper :)

I really feel that several of the songs on this album merit more of a "singles" treatment and I'm trying something different by focusing on one track at a time so each one conveys a separate story with accompanying visuals, videos and strings of shows. I'm really excited to embrace each single more concertedly rather than just having them tease the record; it's just an adjustment in philosophy and having done it one way for over a dozen albums, I'm perfectly happy to do it differently so each song becomes its own full meal, so to speak.

But when I'm ready to announce the album date, I promise you'll be the first to know! I do have all the songs selected and it's already even sequenced. It's a fun feeling actually, to not be rushing so much to share a big batch of songs at once; I think it's actually encouraging me to be more patient in many ways that are positive for me as an artist.

7. The first single off of Canopy, which is the title track, is scheduled to be released May 9, 2025. What made the spring season the right time to release this new song? I don't think that this song is "season-specfic" necessarily so Spring didn't explicitly factor in – though it's always nice to have something new to share in a time of renewal.

The only reason I decided to release it first is because I think the theme of the song may never be more relevant and important than it is right now. If I could've released it in February I would have, but it wasn't ready yet. I've been playing it live for a while though, and it's become sort of a mantra in the sense that when I'm successful at encouraging an audience to sing along, we're able to create a tangible, beautiful moment of collective safety, connection, inclusiveness and determination.

My hope is that the recording of this song is able to do that more widely. It's a heart-opener and a resolution to take care of one another however we're able, so the sooner my band and I can share that message, the better I imagine!

8. I was very fortunate to get an advance listen to the single, "Canopy," and I love the positive message of the song, especially in these very trying times. We are living in a world divided, so how did writing this uplifting song help you find peace amongst the chaos? I think it will be in the sharing and performing of it, that I'm able to find peace and to hopefully cultivate more of it. It's one of those songs that is going to have a varied, colorful life in live settings and hopefully be sung not only by myself, but with strong sing-a-long participation and when you can find a way to bring people together in that way without being preachy, it's a very humbling thing.

I "road-tested" it all last year and never imagined it could be an anthem-of-the-moment as much as it seems to be at my live gigs currently, so in some ways it's now out of my hands. I think it's sort of a litmus test for "how an audience is doing" and how much steam they may need to let off, in a way.

So again, if it can help bring people closer or assure any number of listeners they're not remotely alone, then that's a kind of peace I'll be happy to amplify as much as I can.

9. In the song "Canopy," I love how you sing, "If the world were run by women..." and then you list all the ways in which this world would be better if it were run by women. I agree with everything you sing about in this song, so why do you feel we haven't elected a woman President yet? That's a very important and complex question, so thank you for asking it.

Oh boy...well, I think there are 1000 reasons and excuses, but they all essentially boil down to one: misogyny is deeply embedded in our culture and more than a few women themselves have sadly continued to drink the kool-aid that the men they care about have been serving them for so long, it doesn't taste like the poison that it is.

Without getting specific about particular candidates, their qualifications or personality traits, I can say that personally, I know many men and women – especially in my parents' generation – who continue to be uncomfortable witnessing extremely strong, confident, opinionated, powerful female leaders. They "rub them wrong" and when asked why or to examine that impression, the answers are rarely substantive and often seem like remnants of nostalgic romanticism for prior, more "defined" gender roles in society. 

I like to think that eventually culture will catch up to reason which will make this phenomenon not only outrageous but ridiculous; but right now, in this present political climate, it's more of a challenge to envision that future than it has been in the recent past, so for me as an artist, that increases my resolve to point out the obvious: The Patriarchy hasn't done right by humanity so far, so it would be the definition of insanity to continue on that historical path.

Women's voices and talents and insights and nurturing abilities have the potential to heal this world or at minimum, prevent more unnecessary damage. Women's History Month should be all year, just like Pride should be every day.

The beauty of music and songwriting is that we can make it so, for the 45 minutes to an hour we're in a room with a group of strangers whose only point of connection is that they love live music. How magical is that?

And how can that not instill hope, to experience night after night as I am so fortunate to be able to do?

10. Some of my other favorite lyrics within the song are "Come to me and hold my hand, You don’t have to understand, You just have to stand under my canopy, Come to me with open heart, You don’t have to even start, You just have to want to heal insanity." I truly believe these lyrics demonstrate how this world can be a better place if more people were open-hearted. What is something you didn't understand in your life, but you came to the table with an open heart and allowed yourself to get more knowledge about? This is such a beautiful question!

As someone who considers herself to be an empath by nature, I had to really think about that because truthfully, I find it relatively easy to understand most perspectives even when I don't entirely agree with them. I'm quite a "devil's advocate" and a moderate in many ways as a person. I do my best not to be overly judgmental and to continually allow for the possibility that I know very little about most things – lol.

I suppose one thing I struggled with in my 20's was dating someone who eventually revealed themselves to be a substance abuser. I was perhaps too trusting and too open-hearted and ignored a lot of signs, even putting myself in danger. But the big takeaway from that is in learning more about the disease of addiction, I came to grasp very clearly that while I can be a friend and supporter of someone experiencing that type of struggle, I can't be more deeply involved with them because it's not healthy or safe for me.

Sometimes knowledge only comes through experience, and in the years since I've definitely dodged some bullets because I learned more about boundaries, and the difference between supporting vs. enabling. I've learned to understand codependency and, as the saying goes, that sometimes no can be a full sentence.

I've also learned that being a people-pleaser isn't always being kind and the world doesn't benefit from us shrinking ourselves to avoid confrontation. Easier said than done, but well worth the effort – and just like everyone, I'm always learning.

More Rachael Sage Interviews:

2012 (Read Here): Haunted By You
2020 (Listen Here): My Bravery's On Fire
2024 (Read Here): Another Side
2024 (Watch Here or Listen Here): Finding Another Side

Rachael Sage, Photo Credit: Anna Azarov

More on Rachael Sage:

Since founding her own label MPress Records two decades ago, NYC-based folk-pop artist Rachael Sage has steadily released a slew of vibrant, dynamic albums described by Goldmine Magazine as "mesmerizing...thoughtful, pensive and flush with an emotional flourish, all carefully and adeptly executed."

She has toured with an eclectic list of artists including Rufus Wainwright, Ani DiFranco, Beth Hart, Howard Jones, and Grammy® winners Shawn Colvin and Judy Collins – with whom she also recorded a critically-acclaimed duet of Neil Young's "Helpless."

In addition to being a six-time Independent Music Award-winning musician and producer, Rachael is also a John Lennon Contest Grand Prize winner who has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe, SXSW, and toured globally from Japan to Berlin with her band, The Sequins.

Rachael is also a visual artist and former ballet dancer who performed with the New York City Ballet.

A self-described "cancer thriver," she is additionally a philanthropic advocate who has raised money for a wide range of causes, including Foundation For Women's Cancer, WHY Hunger, American Refugee Committee/Alight, and National Network For Youth (NN4Y).

Her 2020 album Character yielded the Billboard-charting single "Blue Sky Days," and her companion acoustic album, Another Side, is currently out on MPress/Universal/Virgin.

Her upcoming title track single "Canopy" is due May, 2025; the full album, Canopy, will follow later this year.