Using her fame as a YouTube sensation, Julia Nunes has garnered quite the impressive fanbase. Due to their loyalty, Nunes managed to raise a staggering $130,000 via Kickstarter to fund her upcoming album, Some Feelings. “I think of it less that I raised money [and] more like I sold albums before [they] existed,” she says. “The craziest part is that many people were interested in my album.” Grateful for the support, Nunes has offered rewards like signed ukuleles, EPs and Skype calls. 

As she readies for the release of that album, we initially had a tough time getting a hold of Nunes. A few minutes later, she calls back and apologies. She was listening to The Weeknd on blast and didn’t hear the phone ring (we understand). Once on the phone, she told us all about her move to Los Angeles, the themes on her album and how YouTube was instrumental in helping her career. 

Did you recently move to LA from Brooklyn?

A year and a half ago but it still feels new. Unbeknownst to me, I moved really close to Hollywood Blvd. I was staying at my friend’s house in the Hollywood Hills and I never crossed over Hollywood Blvd, so I didn’t know it was right there. I have no sense of direction, like none, so driving around, I didn’t get a sense of where I was. I didn’t realize how close to the action I was from my place, but it’s a serene oasis.

Since you moved here, you ended up writing and recording an album though.

Yeah. I started it back in Brooklyn. I had a couple of sad songs and a couple of retrospective songs that I wrote when I was in LA, but I think I wrote a third of it back in Brooklyn.

How did moving to LA shape the direction of the lyrics and sound?

I think it’s more about the people I worked with here. Actually, lots of them were from Brooklyn; my producer Joanna moved to LA two months before me, but I didn’t know her. I went to an acoustic Say Anything show, and when I checked the bill, one of my good acquaintances Allison Weiss was opening. So I saw her at the show and she told me she lived here now. I told her I just moved here four days ago and I met her girlfriend Joanna Katcher. They invited me to a Super Bowl party, where I met the entire group of people I hang out with now. The guy who mixed my record, the guy who plays drums, the guy who plays guitar—all people who moved here from Brooklyn.

What were some topical matters you address on your album and how were they different from what you’ve written before?

That’s interesting. I don’t think the songs are that different in the writing. I’ve always just been examining my life from a vantage point of “Hmmm, this kind of blows and let’s examine why.” That’s where I was at when I was writing this album. It was a beautiful pity party. The first song I released is called “Something Bad,” and it was totally indulging with these horrible cliches that you go through after a breakup. Just all the ways that you wish you weren’t an idiot after you breakup with someone. It’s a bit of a pity party. The biggest difference between this record and anything I’ve written before is the love songs. I used to think I only wrote songs when I was upset, but I wrote a song about really wanting to make out with someone—two actually! So that’s the biggest difference.

How has YouTube enabled you to build and spread your music to a wide audience? 

It’s huge. YouTube is where my fanbase found me. It’s an incredible search engine where you can find exactly what you’re looking for. I think people found an extremely honest band and a bleeding heart in me. YouTube is so personal, and I think I’ve connected with my fans in a way where musicians who took a traditional route may have not connected. Since that’s where I come from, I think my fans know me on a different level than if I came up on another social media platform. 

‘Some Feelings’ is out September 25 and can be pre-ordered through iTunes.