For Rochelle Leach, music was the first language they understood. While they were never part of a school choir or a particularly musical family, singing privately in their bedroom sparked something magical in their psyche; they knew in their heart, and their soul, that this was the path for them. Eventually, Leach mustered up the courage to sing cover songs at their middle school talent shows, and throughout high school, worked on their artistry through writing poetry and lyrics. Like many navigating the tricky territory of growing up, Leach found the experience gruelling. It wasn’t until their last few years of high school that they discovered their spirituality: building their first altar at 17, they began to create a nourishing relationship with their spirit and with the universe, gaining confidence in themselves and the way in which they saw the world. Seeing themselves in this new and brilliant light, Borboleta was born.
Their debut EP UNTIL THAT TIME is a rumination on entering adulthood for the very first time, tackling themes of uncertainty, anger, curiosity and the chaos that comes with falling in love. The project started four years ago, when Leach decided to announce to their college preparatory school classmates and teachers that no, they wouldn’t be going to college after all. “I remember sitting in the library when we were working on college applications and I said it out loud for the first time,” they explain. “I had never even said it out loud to myself. It felt heroic in my body, but then I had to deal with it in the real world.”
This kind of courage is palpable throughout the EP, as Leach explores very eternal feelings in their life with a powerfully distinct and cathartic lens. On “Sunchips,” a gorgeously laid-back neo-soul jam, feelings of love for another mutate into a declaration of love for the self. Over gentle guitar, Leach reassures us that although time is passing, you can still take things as slowly as you need to: whether that’s love or following your dreams. Elsewhere, “Fly” encourages Borboleta to continue on their path, to push through, regardless of the outcome. Over jazz-pop keys and sparse industrial beats, “Fly” is a generous reminder of going easy on yourself because, in Leach’s words, “everything is inevitable.”
