AVA VALIANTI
Q Why did you name this song “Buttercups”?
I think the song was always called “Buttercups” because of the lyrical focus on buttercups, but also because I just really felt like it encapsulated the almost magical feel to the song that I wanted to shine through. I’ve always loved buttercups, as well as the symbolism of innocence and light that goes along with the flower. I just felt like it really represented the song well and the name makes me happy so that’s always a plus!
Q The lyrics sound very honest and raw—was it scary to release something so personal?
No matter what, releasing a song is terrifying. This song, however, was a little different because while I wrote this song with certain emotions in mind, it didn’t derive from actual personal events, so this one felt almost more freeing to release! I love storytelling in my songs, and this song was an exciting way to prove to myself that I can tell stories that are meaningful and impactful, even if they didn’t happen to me.
Q You speak of love as both hurting and soft—how do you envision the give-and-take of that happen in life?
I think that love is an extremely complex emotion to feel, and it builds you up while it’s breaking you down. You can give everything you have to a person, and while that might be the most beautiful thing to you, it could also drain you and leave you empty. It’s always been a give-and-take and I really wanted to delve into both sides of love, and how it affects people in situations where love feels all-powerful.
Q Do you imagine the garden of the song to be symbolic of hope, healing, or something else?
I would definitely say that the garden represents some sort of healing and growth within the relationship in the song, but at the same time it’s also planting the seeds of that love and letting the roots get even deeper in the ground. So the push and pull of love exists even in this part of the song, and it’s really up to interpretation for each listener!
Q You were only fifteen when you had feelings even grown-ups can’t—where do you think sensitivity comes from?
I’ve always been a pretty sensitive kid, but didn’t have an outlet for those emotions that stood out to me until I discovered songwriting, singing, and performing! Since then, I’ve had a place to show my emotions unapologetically, and it’s extremely freeing! I get to tap into emotions and thoughts that might have been buried otherwise, and I’m extremely grateful to songwriting for allowing me to feel everything so deeply.
Q The lyrics of the song switch between bittersweet memories and sharpsorrow confessions—is that the way you began writing or did you intend it?
I’d say that while the writing was always intended to have different emotions wrapped inside of it, the song started out a lot more sentimental and tame than it ended up turning into. I’m extremely happy with how the song turned out, and glad that the song gets to transition between ethereal moments and hard hitting moments, especially because in a way it represents my own brain and how I think.
Q Do you believe heartbreak has to leave scars behind or can actually create something positive too?
I mean, both can definitely be possible. More often than not, you can find yourself scarred by people when relationships end or people leave, because it means that a chapter of your life is coming to a close. However, I’d say that it’s some of the most beautiful relationships that can leave you with happy memories and a positive outlook, and that’s something I strive to create and find with people.
Q When you mentioned trusting no more, did that come from this specific story or something else?
I think sometimes that when you completely surrender yourself to a person with your love, you can sacrifice things like trust, judgment, and even sense because you’re so utterly in love with them, and I wanted this part of the song to represent how that could feel for someone so hopelessly in love.
Q Do you feel as attached to the person you wrote about now, or is your thinking different now that you’ve written it?
There isn’t a specific person that the lyrics of this song were ever necessarily attached to, but I would say that my relationship to this song has certainly evolved over the many years it took to write. When I first started to create “Buttercups”, I was more focused on the music than the lyrics, and was frustrated that I couldn’t find the inspiration for some of the lyrics throughout the song. But as time went on, I realized that some of my favorite lyrics I’ve ever written were in this song, and I truly saw the song for all its value!
Q You’re singing about looking for signs of this person everywhere—do you think that’s what keeps love going?
Partly, because chasing memories of someone that’s gone or leaving can always keep the feelings alive, and keep that romantic spark going. However, if you’re just chasing memories instead of the actual person, maybe that person wasn’t meant to be yours to begin with.
Q Even with the sadness, there’s a soft kind of hope—how important was it to you to hold onto that hope throughout the song?
I’ve always been one to hold onto hope, and am kind of an eternal optimist in most situations – especially romantically. So I knew that the feeling of holding onto hope and love needed to be an integral force in “Buttercups”, and a theme that kept revealing itself to the listener throughout the song.
Q Would you look at “Buttercups” as a goodbye, or holding onto something dear?
A bit of both, definitely. It’s equally a song about moving on and being stuck in one place, equally about eternal love and the absence of that love. There’s hope and love at the same time as doubt and loss, all this can exist at once and jumbles into a wonderful mess that it “Buttercups”.
Q Has writing and releasing “Buttercups” changed the way you think about love or heartbreak?
I’d say it almost affirmed the confusing and confounding nature of it, and that the most passionate forms of love can hurt you the most – and heal you a little bit. I don’t quite yet know what love means to me, and this song represents that for me more than anything.
Q If you were going to say one thing to the person who wrote these lyrics, what would it be now?
If I could say something to myself when I first wrote the lyrics, I’d tell her to just enjoy the ride and not be so worried about what love meant to her. We’ll never truly know what love means to all of us, but we have to keep finding love no matter what.
