Born and raised in Seattle and now based in Los Angeles, Maya Kuriel is a first-generation Korean American artist whose journey into music began at just four years old. By sixteen, she was already writing and recording her own songs, combining dark pop melodies with lyrics that reflect her true feelings. Her music often explores themes of love, mental health, anxiety, and self-acceptance, relating to people facing emotional struggles. With a Bachelor of Music in Songwriting and Music Production from the Musicians Institute and releases like Bittersweet and Helpless, Maya is steadily establishing herself as a great new voice in alt-pop.

Maya’s latest single, Alibi, is a feverish mix of different types of genres that depicts the complexities of love, loyalty, and moral ambiguity. The song also explores a heightened, dramatised version of devotion – a “ride-or-die” mentality that Maya admits once led her to make decisions that defied logic. It’s this emotional extremity, this push-and-pull between passion and reason, that shapes much of her recent work. Maya views songwriting not just as confession or escape, but as confrontation, a way to wrestle with emotions she struggles to express in everyday life. Despite the emotional toll, she finds beauty in turning pain into connection, saying she’s never felt more in sync with her listeners. With a sound that borrows from various genres and a growing confidence in emotional storytelling, Maya is making a name for herself in alt-pop music. Looking ahead, she’s ready to explore lighter, more ethereal territory, challenging herself to find hope without losing the intensity that defines her.

Pulling from real emotional spaces can be intense, but I find a lot of beauty in the fact that I get to share those raw experiences. With these last two releases, I’ve never felt more connected to my supporters, and I’m very grateful for that.

View of the Arts: Alibi feels like a cinematic fever dream: intense, moody, and driven by desire. What drew you to this darker, more shadowy tone, and how does it reflect where you are creatively or personally right now?

Maya Kuriel: I’ve definitely been tapping into darker melodies, lyrics, concepts, and production as of late. It feels more honest with where I am creatively. I actually had been wanting to write a love song because I’ve been in a long-term relationship with a partner that I trust and love very much. The idea I had was to explore that, and Alibi stemmed from it. Of course, it’s me, so it was never going to be a straightforward love song. In the writing session, I found myself leaning into a very dramatized version of love. A ride-or-die kind of loyalty that blurs moral lines.

VOA: This track celebrates a kind of love that defies reason, a ride-or-die kind of loyalty. Have you ever been in a situation where love overpowered logic? Where do you think that impulse comes from?

MK: I have been in a situation where I decided to choose love over logic. It can be super harmful, but I’ll be completely transparent in saying that in the past, I’ve been so blinded by love that I started to lose my common sense. I think that impulse comes from a very human need to connect deeply. I feel everything, always. When you love someone, you’ll try to stay, even if it makes no sense. I know better now, thankfully.

VOA: Both Alibi and Dead Weight tackle complicated, even dangerous, forms of love. Why do you think you’re drawn to these extreme emotional spaces, and what does it cost you emotionally to go there as a songwriter?

MK: Alibi and Dead Weight hold a very special place in my heart because of how extremely complicated and emotionally charged they both are. I feel like I really laid it all out on the table. Now that I’m in my mid-20s, I’ve experienced all types of love. Some experiences I’ve had have been all-consuming, even destructive at times. This is definitely the most honest songwriting I’ve done in my career so far. The cost? That’s a great question. Pulling from real emotional spaces can be intense, but I find a lot of beauty in the fact that I get to share those raw experiences. With these last two releases, I’ve never felt more connected to my supporters, and I’m very grateful for that.

VOA: You paint vivid portraits of characters who seem trapped and liberated at the same time, running from something, running toward something. Do you see your songs as emotional escapes, confessions, or something else entirely?

MK: All of the above. I would also say I see my songs as a confrontation. I struggle with that in my day-to-day life. My songs are definitely a way for me to understand myself.

VOA: There’s a clear shift from Dead Weight to Alibi, from pain and entrapment to adrenaline and reckless devotion. What changed between the two songs, and does that reflect a shift in your outlook on love and relationships?

MK: Dead Weight came from a place of exhaustion. I wrote about feeling like I was suffocating, feeling like I was drowning, where “love” felt extremely heavy. Like I mentioned, I was in a completely different headspace with Alibi. This was my dark attempt at writing a love song. Both songs are extremely chaotic and passionate, and I’m very proud of these releases.

I’ve been very focused on creating a space where I can follow wherever my emotion leads. Especially without limitation.

VOA: You’ve spoken about turning intense emotion into immersive sonic experiences. What’s the emotional line you won’t cross, or is there none? Do you ever fear getting lost in the darkness of the stories you tell?

VOA: There are definitely things I won’t write about. These are things that I’m still processing and still living in. I want to always remember to write from the heart, but also make sure to protect myself and protect my peace. Not everything has to be put out for the world to hear. My goal is actually to attempt to write lighter material. I think finding a good balance would be challenging for me, but necessary to make sure I don’t get lost in the darkness.

VOA: Alibi plays with themes of secrecy, duality, and escape. Are you drawn to these ideas because they mirror something in your own life, perhaps a desire to disappear, reinvent, or rebel?

MK: All of the above answers. Especially as an independent artist, I am in a constant battle with myself. It’s a push and pull between wanting to be fully seen and wanting to disappear.

VOA: Your sound is genre-blurring. Are you consciously creating a kind of alt-pop universe, or are you just following where the emotion leads?

MK: I’ve been very focused on creating a space where I can follow wherever my emotion leads. Especially without limitation. In music school, I studied so many different genres, and my love for music doesn’t just lie in one genre. I’m taking inspiration from various genres, and that has resulted in creating that “genre-blurring” sound. I’ve been trying to get here for a while, so I love that you identified and asked that.

VOA: Looking ahead, should we expect to go even deeper into this noir, emotionally intense territory, or are you planning to break away into something lighter, maybe even hopeful?

MK: I’m definitely planning to break away into something lighter and more ethereal in my upcoming sessions. That space is a bit more challenging for me for some reason, but I’m very excited to see where that leads.

Written and interviewed by Maggie Gogler

Featured image courtesy of Maya Kuriel

_{View of the Arts is an online publication dedicated to films, music, and arts, with a strong focus on the Asian entertainment industry. With rich content already available to our readers, we aim to expand our reach and grow alongside our audience by delving deeper into emerging platforms such as K-pop and Asian music more broadly. At the same time, we remain committed to exploring the vibrant and ever-evolving global landscape of film, music, and the arts, celebrating the immense talent and creativity that define these industries worldwide.}