Arlo Parks

Yeah, there is that elastic limit when you just can't find your shape again.

And I think maybe it's that, it's when the things that your whole life have been sources of joy and nourishment and the things that always make you feel better start not being able to pull you out anymore.

And that's when you really do need to stop because especially when I think about longevity, when I think about

doing something for decades, pacing is so important.

And I didn't want to be somebody who, you know, had this like bright shooting star and wasn't able to, you know, have this longer arc of creativity.

And, you know, what mattered to me most was feeling like I was in touch with myself and my art and my fans and the people around me, but also my family, my partner, you know,

being a human being and maintaining those relationships was also so important to me.

So when something feels really deeply misaligned and those people or those things that always bring you comfort can't really touch you anymore, I think that's when it's really time to stop.

I think for me, it's always leather for some reason.

I think a leather jacket and leather pants, that feels like my armor.

There's something about it to me where I feel so myself.

I think it's...

the androgyny of it.

I think it's the way that, you know, when you wear a leather jacket over years, it really kind of, you know, your shape fills it in this perfect way.

And I think also, you know, having jewelry and little charms that friends have given me,

over time carrying those in my pocket.

My partner gave me this little gold matchbox with these doves on it.

And I think when I have things like that and I carry them with me, that makes me feel protected in a way.

There's something that regulates me, I think, having things that have meaning and have accumulated meaning as I've carried them around with me through airports and cities and venues.

I'm going to remind myself.