INTERVIEW
Alice Gee | 16/10/2026
From viral phenomenon to boundary-pushing pop provocateur, Rebecca Black has spent the past decade rewriting the rules on her own terms, ready for her most unapologetic era yet.
As she steps into an era of excess, desire and freedom with Age of the Exhibitionist, her highly anticipated sophomore album, Rebecca offers a study in seduction and surrender, glossy, commanding and an album that is deliberately indulgent. Rebecca is no longer interested in playing by anyone else’s rules, rather following breezy confidence she has created a glorious new chapter.
Alice: Age of the Exhibitionist feels provocative. What does its meaning and being an “exhibitionist”, mean to you at this point in your life and what artistry and inspiration were part of your new album?
Rebecca: In this world, exhibitionism is rooted in a desire to be seen at your most vulnerable, rather than in the traditional sense of the word. For me, it feels like I’m on this constant dance between my most vulnerable being who I truly am, versus who I want to be seen as - and revealing either these days feels just as daunting. At this point in my life, I’ve lived more of my life on display than I haven’t - not just as an artist but as a child of the internet - and different aspects of that relationship have at times made that distinction challenging. Opening up that conversation publicly felt more revealing than anything.
A: How does Age of the Exhibitionist differ emotionally from SALVATION?
R: SALVATION felt like kicking a door open, this exclamation of confidence and allowing myself to exist at my loudest and proudest. I don’t think I could have made this album without SALVATION allowing me to find this sense of flamboyance in myself. It also really allowed me to understand the kind of artist I wanted to be in the long term and how I wanted to make people feel. Age of the Exhibitionist really felt like doubling down on my own mission statement and within that flamboyance - allow myself to find solace in the more fragile aspects of my relationship with myself, where I come from and who I want to be.
A: Do you feel like you’re making music now with less concern about how people might interpret you?
R: I think the process of making music purely out of concern for others really began to disassemble for me around 2019 or 2020. I left my previous teams and, at that point, truly felt like I had nothing to lose. I’d spent so many years trying to please others and become who I felt they wanted me to be, and that never worked - it never made me happy; it only froze up any desire to create within myself. I had no idea if anyone would ever really care about what I had to say again, but in all this silence I think I found this safe space to create just for my own enjoyment and exploration of it and that’s what’s carried me through. Ever since then the main mission for me is how can I continue to develop a sound that feels not just like exploration but truly like only something I could create - that’s really the piece that matters most to me now.
A: Is there a particular song on the new album that feels like the biggest creative risk you’ve taken?
R: “Miss Delicious” felt like a big swing. It’s one of my favourites because of how undeniably brash it is, and it never lets up. It also felt a little risky to make such a head-smashing track like that so long, in a moment where it feels like the craziest dance tracks keep getting shorter and shorter- maybe out of fear of becoming redundant or unappealing to a listener- but to us in the studio, the length felt like one of the things that made it so special. But at the end of the day, you never know how that will translate, and a piece of me definitely questioned at times in the process of making it if it was too much. But now that it's out and I’m seeing the way people are digging it, I am starting to notice a trend that whatever song feels the wildest and most audacious on the album to me not only feels like one of the more nerve-wracking pieces to present to people - but also almost always becomes the one people resonate with the most.
A: The phrase “empowered raunch” really stands out in your description of “Hot Wet Delirious.” What does empowered raunch look like to you?
R: Raunchiness, to me, has always felt like a term that’s carried this weight of being something that shouldn’t be allowed, or something wrong or somewhat immoral - and it's not the only term I feel has been used primarily to describe - particularly a woman’s - sexual freedom, that feels like it comes with more weight than it needs. “Hot Wet” is meant to, in a way, disassemble those feelings of right and wrong from someone else’s point-of-view and find a to relish in your own without unnecessary judgement.
A: The song embraces being “selfish, powerful, needy and commanding” simultaneously. Why was it important to you not to present desire as something neat or uncomplicated?
R: Well, often times, our deepest desires come with real, complex feelings and emotions, and being able to accept and unpack those feelings is a deeply human process. As somebody who grew up feeling like she had to be perfect in order to be deemed worthy, somewhere down the line I realised that chasing that impossible expectation would only ever lead to disappointment. None of this is to say we should be able to live by any means without any standards or boundaries, but I think forgiveness of your own imperfections allows for your own inner world to become a comfortable place to make a mistake, try something new, and uncover what feels uniquely yours.
A: What did you express visually in this video that felt matched to pair with the song?
R: The video really tells the story of the song in a really campy and abstract way. There’s this pull between fantasy and reality, and simply getting lost in the mix, all purely for your own pleasure. One of the best parts about it to me is seeing how people put the pieces together on their own.
A: There’s an interesting contrast between the title Age of the Exhibitionist and your early experience of having an enormous amount of attention placed on you so young. Does the album explore taking ownership of visibility? You in control and choosing the narrative.
R: It’s certainly an exploration of my relationship with visibility, and my identity within my career. I look back to my beginnings and see the person I am now in some ways as a direct result of my teenage experience, and the older I get the more I see the through lines of how much control means to me as an artist, a partner, a friend - but as much as there is power in ownership and leadership of your own narrative and identity, I think the real beauty comes from letting it all go. This album is really meant to hold both of those things equally.
A: With the release of your album and other elements of your life and performing, what are you most hungry to do currently?
R: Right now, it’s to perform. An album cycle comes with so many vividly different moments of time, and I think more than anything I’m just so excited to bring this album to life on stage. I’m always entering the building process of a show ready to challenge myself, and I left my last year of touring with so many lessons to learn and grow from. I feel really ready to implement all of that into an ever better, more exciting show and version of my self as a performer. Tour also always feels like a celebration to me, and I always feel so lucky to get to be in a room where we all get to relish in the feelings of the music together, after spending so much time with it on my own before its out. You really get to see how and what connects, and I find that so special.
Creative Paris Mumpower @parismumpower
Photography Paris Mumpower @parismumpower
Styling Dot Bass @dottttbass
Hair Styling Gregg Lennon Jr. @gregglennonjr
MUA Nick Lennon @itsnicklennon
Photography Assistant Morgan @morgliving
Styling Assistant Kelly Goldy-Brown @kellygoldybrown
Styling Assistant Liza @goatprincesse
Styling Assistant Dolly Picklehaupt @dollypickels
Words Alice Gee @alicesgee
