Ángeles Toledano: "You can't do things halfway. If you want to convey an emotion, you have to go all out."

BarcelonaCatalan scenarios such as the Festival Vida Venues such as Vilanova i la Geltrú, the Teatro la Atlántida during the Vic Live Music Market, and the Sala Apolo in Barcelona have witnessed the sonic and visual impact of Ángeles Toledano (Villanueva de la Reina, Jaén, 1995). Flamenco singer by training, and an explorer of the type as the flamenco singer Rocío MárquezToledano is building a very interesting artistic narrative from the album Dirty blood (Universal, 2024).

One year after publication Dirty bloodWhat's your assessment?

— Super positive. I'm so proud of everything the album has achieved. It's more than I ever dreamed of. I'm thrilled with the tour we're doing.

Is it also a reward for so many years of study and work? It's not a success that comes at 20, but practically at 30.

— Yes, absolutely. I embrace it as a reward for all the work, all the reflection, all the study, and all the love I've dedicated to music for so long. And for having done it slowly, at my own pace, because until I made the album, I barely knew the music industry and didn't know that rushing existed. In flamenco, everything is so slow... You start to be recognized as flamenco singer When you're older. Now I've realized that I've made an album at a more mature age.

However, you notice that your voice still has some range, right? You haven't pushed it to its limit yet.

— No, not at all. I'm getting to know myself in another way, outside of flamenco. Flamenco, even though it's very personal, is still imitating, so to speak. flamenco singers ancient or flamenco singers of your time. And it also becomes somewhat impersonal because it's really reinterpreting songs by Camarón, Enrique Morente... It was when I went into the studio and started making my own music that I realized there might be a more personal path. But it has to be done calmly. My personality is still developing, and I'll give it all the time it needs.

Your relationship with flamenco began at a very young age, but not because of your family environment, right?

— In my immediate family, nothing. In fact, my mother didn't like flamenco. Now she likes it more than I do (laughs). At home, no one told me what I should listen to. It just happened that way. And today, my whole life and that of my family has been built around music. My parents have given me all their support, taking me to school for years and locks to learn, and in the end, their lives have also been built around it.

Singers Rocío Márquez has learned to engage more actively with the microphone and the studio, something that didn't happen as much before. She has also introduced new themes into her lyrics.

— Rocío is an undisputed role model for all of us, and we must value her as she deserves. Through her creative approach, her creative processes, and her way of proposing ideas, she has encouraged us to be brave and to make our own proposals.

Probably, without the precedent of Rocío Márquez, you wouldn't have dared to include Sara Torres in The word in the mouth and build the song the way you do.

— She's shown us this whole world. Absolutely.

Where do you think your next artistic steps will lead?

— For now, I'm still creating about Dirty blood...shaping a very lively live performance that I love. I experience it with great intensity. It's true that there's something, like a kind of physical symptom in my sternum area, that's shifting. But I still don't know what it is, or what it will be like, or when, or anything. But there's something that's already making me think. I'm writing; it's chaotic.

A mess in what direction? Along the lines of what you do in Seguiriya,Mom, you were right either Night apple?

— Towards something I haven't quite grasped yet.

About Dirty bloodThe album begins with Araora asIt sounds like the soundtrack to a horror movie, although the album itself isn't scary at all.

— Yes, there was an intention to break through that fear. We carry a lot of fear, and I wanted to create fiction, to make music. I really wanted to. I remember when they would send me the changes they made to the video, and I would tell them, "It has to be scarier, more of a nightmare." It never seemed enough to me. There was a time when people would say to me, "How scary!" And I thought maybe I'd gone too far. But over time I understood that you can't do things halfway. If you want to convey an emotion, you have to go all in. For things to last, you have to go all the way.

That's why your concerts are so contrasting, with very solemn and restrained parts that suddenly break down and let in a lot of joy.

— Yes. Contrast, lots of contrast, like a good Twins movie.

What is your best memory related to music?

— My fondest memory of music is sitting with my grandfather and sharing those moments that made us connect. He's no longer with us, but he leaves me with a wonderful memory.

And a musical memory you'd like to forget?

— I'd like to completely forget the days of competitions. I spent many years competing in flamenco clubs, and it's left a deep mark on me. I'd like to forget it because it wasn't a happy time at all. In fact, I didn't like that competitiveness in the slightest. I had a really hard time. I can't deny that it happened to me, but I'd like to forget it and understand that music isn't about competition, that it's something else entirely.

And do you get anxious, for example, about the number of plays your songs get?

— It's not something that's worried me until now, which is when I'm finally learning how the music industry works. Am I worried? Well, I want to keep having resources and keep working; and if I need money to achieve that, then yes, I am worried. Because I want to keep working, because I want to keep reaching the public and making records, because I want to keep dedicating myself to music. I feel privileged to say that I'm not worried, because if you're not worried, it means you have the resources and the money behind you, acting as a safety net. I am worried because I need it, but I'm not overly concerned.