A Woman Who Returns Singing: the album bridging Chile and Mexico through reconciliation, color and the voice of Verónica Andrea Garay Opaso (Vero Garay)
Some records arrive like a postcard. Others arrive like a conversation. And there are albums that, beyond sounding beautiful, seem to put things in order inside you. That is, more or less, what it feels like to discover the musical project A Woman Who Returns Singing, the new record by Vero Garay, a singer who lives a personal route between Chile and Mexico and who, as she tells it, finds in her music a way of returning to herself.
The focus of the album is not only aesthetic. The thread running through it is narrative and human: one woman in different facets. And that idea repeats itself with loving insistence in the lyrics and in the way the sound is produced: color, brightness, pop moments and also intimacy. The key is that, at its core, the song is not used to "show off," but to recognize oneself.
Table of contents
- The concept behind "A Woman Who Returns Singing"
- The story of a woman in different facets (and why it connects with any woman)
- From school to the guitar: how her musical path begins
- When you decide to make a career (and why it is sometimes hard to show yourself)
- Chile to Mexico: the personal process as a sound studio
- The Mexican music covers: a cultural bridge with intention
- Faith and the way of sustaining oneself: gratitude as a muscle
- A song for her mother: reconciliation, distance and presence
- How the record sounds: color, brightness, pop and a new breadth
- The vocal evolution: from difficult high notes to a "whole" voice
- Women who sing and build: feminine strength behind the record
- The words that hold up the album: reconciliation, returning and keeping flowing
- Key words of the project (to keep thinking about the album)
- FAQ about "A Woman Who Returns Singing"
- An aesthetic and emotional proposal to listen to calmly
The concept behind "A Woman Who Returns Singing"
In an emotional and professional interview with the prominent media journalist Álvaro Paci, the Chilean singer-songwriter based in Mexico, Vero Garay, unveiled her new musical album, which through its songs and her career bridges two cultures by way of her voice. Vero Garay went deeper into the fact that the production process is shaped by her own musical and life relocation: "from Chile to Mexico" as a path of growth and maturation. It is not only geography. It is the way the body learns something new and identity rearranges itself.
The title, moreover, contains a gesture that seems double: returning singing, but also returning to one's essence. Vero Garay says it with emotional clarity, blending reconciliation and self-care, as if each track were a kind of embrace given from within.
"it has to do with a woman who returns singing, but it is neither to Chile nor to Mexico… I return to myself… I return to my essence, I return to recognizing myself, I return to loving myself."
The record, in that sense, is assembled as a journey: songs that hold the same core, but that change angle, like when you look at a photo under a different light. Vero Garay mentions that the album brings together six of her own songs and three songs from a Mexican trilogy. In other words, the intimacy of her writing coexists with the cultural connection that builds the bridge toward Mexico.
The story of a woman in different facets (and why it connects with any woman)
Vero Garay insists on a powerful idea: her musical narrative starts from "her" and, even so, it transfers across. She is a woman who appears in many parts of the world, because she holds up and accompanies. Not always with grandiloquent phrases, but with everyday actions: the ones who "endure," who hold up the smile, who carry the family forward and, only after that, finally begin to reclaim themselves.
That premise turns the album into a kind of mirror. It is not "this happens to me," but "there is a part of this that also lives in me." And that is why the concept "A Woman Who Returns Singing" works as an emotional umbrella, even though it is never stated that way in any song.
Lyrics that feel collective, even when they are personal
On several occasions Vero Garay mentions how the songs become other people's when they listen to them. That response from the audience, as she tells it, confirms for her that the music does not stay on the stage. The song reaches real life and each person adopts it in their own way.
"a lot of people tell me, you know what, it seems like you wrote this song for me."
This is key to understanding the tone of the project. There is no attempt to control how people feel. A space is built where the song can enter naturally.
From school to the guitar: how her musical path begins
Vero Garay places the start of her music earlier than is usually thought. She says she began with music at 11 years old, and she remembers it through a song and a domestic gesture: her sister had the guitar, and Vero Garay found in a songbook the chords for "Cuando Agosto Era 21," by Fernando Ubiergo.
What is interesting here is not the fact, it is the image: her looking at chords, learning, and copying the way someone close held the guitar. Learning starts with the body, with observation, with the patience of repetition.
"I started at 11 years old and it was in Mirasol."
From there, music becomes a permanent companion. Vero Garay recounts that she sang in the parish and at school, and that she later followed a training path in singing, linked to the SCD, where she worked on the process of musical learning.
One phrase sums up the general idea well: music was right there beside her. It did not "arrive" one day and that was it. It grew in parallel with life.
When you decide to make a career (and why it is sometimes hard to show yourself)
The conversation drifts toward the moment when a person starts to wonder about a career, about records, about songs of one's own. Vero Garay answers that it is not easy to pinpoint an exact moment, but she mentions a teacher, Chico Zepeda (Herman Alfonso Zepeda Flores), as a key incentive.
That push translates into releasing her own songs in public settings, such as the Book Fair in La Serena. Vero Garay, however, also speaks of the discomfort: singing her own work was like undressing, like exposing herself without a filter. And that took her a fair amount of time.
"… every time I was going to sing a song of mine, it was like undressing… zero filter."
Over the years, what appears is not "more courage" like a movie character. Something more everyday appears: the learning of self-acceptance. Vero Garay understands that, when you accept yourself, you sing with less armor.
Chile to Mexico: the personal process as a sound studio
Part of the album's charm is that the process is not told only in artistic terms. Vero Garay links it to her life in Mexico. She says her musical routine includes work with children in Puerto Aventuras, near areas like Cancún and Tulum, and specifically at the Colegio Puerto Aventuras.
There a creative practice arises that, by her account, feeds her record directly: every class in March makes its own song. Vero Garay describes it as "the month of creativity." And the pedagogical work becomes a seed.
"the month of March… is the month of creativity. So each class makes its song."
In addition, Vero Garay mentions that she has been living there for eight years and that only now are certain things "blossoming." It is a way of speaking about time as artistic material. There is no rush. There is slow growth.
Sow and watch: music as everyday practice
When an artist teaches music, something curious happens: in accompanying others, one's own things are also reordered. Vero Garay speaks of happy parents and, above all, of children making music. And that adds an extra ingredient to the album: it is not only "her" voice; it is a collective energy that is trained.
The Mexican music covers: a cultural bridge with intention
The record also has a gesture of cultural give-and-take. Vero Garay mentions that she includes three Mexican songs produced by Janito Rivera, which are connected to the Day of the Dead season. Apparently, these songs have a strong presence in Mexico, though perhaps they were less known elsewhere.
The idea, in Vero Garay's words, is to create a cultural bridge and reinforce it. It is not about "learning repertoire" and that's it. It is about presenting music from a context she now also lives within, and doing so with her voice.
"mostly for the Day of the Dead."
Vero Garay adds that performing them live brings that warm reception: as if the audience recognized them. And she also mentions invitations to present the record in places like Veracruz and Oaxaca.
Faith and the way of sustaining oneself: gratitude as a muscle
There is something that appears throughout the interview: spirituality, but not as rigid discourse. Vero Garay names it as fire, as gratitude, as a way of keeping flowing.
"that fire is always there… and that thank you is always there… to keep flowing."
When a voice speaks like this, the lyrics tend to bring memory and presence. Vero Garay connects it with songs from the record like "Estoy aquí," where there is a bond with memories, with laughter, with grandmothers and with those who are no longer here but somehow remain present.
"when I remember my grandmother… or those who are no longer here… but who are still here… and you remember their smile and it soothes you."
That soothing is not only a literary effect. It is a declaration of emotional intentions: the song as a place to breathe.
A song for her mother: reconciliation, distance and presence
Of all the album's axes, this is one of the clearest. Vero Garay recounts that she decided to make a song for her mother because she always encouraged her, because she liked that she sang, because there was a family routine where her uncles and she put together songs and guitars.
Then, a factor appears that makes the gesture even more intimate: distance, time, the pandemic. Vero Garay mentions that the song is born as a "today I sing for you," because her mother lives there, present even when there are distances and sorrows.
"I began with today I sing for you, because you live next to me, despite all the distances… the pandemic… she is there, she is present."
And she also mentions that recording the video was a kind of reconciliation. Not necessarily because of a dramatic conflict, but because of those things that sometimes a person did not say, or that were left pending. Vero Garay calls it a giant step as a woman: accepting the other person as they are, not trying to change them.
"it is beautiful because it is a giant step for me as a woman, to accept, to love… not to want to change my mom…"
In this part, the album stops being only "sound" and turns into affective practice. It is music as relational learning.
How the record sounds: color, brightness, pop and a new breadth
Musically, Vero Garay describes an atmosphere with a lot of color. She says Mexico has color and joy, and at the same time something intimate. That mixture is reflected in the production work, led by Alejandro Janito Rivera and Gonzalo Maldonado, whom she credits with having understood her essence.
She also mentions a renewed singer-songwriter track, with a particular sound: a piano that recalls, according to her, the vibe of Whitney Houston. And, in addition, she talks about widening the palette: moving from "the little guitar and the voice" to new things, in a group, playing at making music and having a good time.
"It is taking the risk of leaving my comfort zone, of the little guitar and the voice."
Playing as technique: the part that is also designed
When an artist names play as a form of creation, she is hinting at something about the process: not everything is rigid planning. There is also emotional rehearsal, interaction and experimentation.
And if the album feels that way, it is no coincidence: Vero Garay tells it as part of the way it was produced.
The vocal evolution: from difficult high notes to a "whole" voice
Vero Garay talks about her voice as an instrument trained over time. She recounts that, since childhood, she had "difficult" high notes, but that today her range has changed.
How does she explain it? As muscular growth of the vocal cords, and as progressive learning of technique. She mentions a first teacher, Inés Delano, who kept telling her there were still things to learn, although at the time Vero Garay did not understand what she meant. Over the years, she now understands it as continuous training.
"being, let's say, muscles… the vocal cords keep training."
Vero Garay describes her current voice as rounder, more lived-in, more united with the body. And she says it with an almost tactile image: a voice "that comes with soul" and "is not separate."
"a voice that is not separate from this body… a whole voice."
She also says she keeps experimenting and learning. At the same time, she mentions that she teaches singing and music, and that this strengthens her. There is something lovely here: her voice does not stay frozen in "before." It keeps building itself with daily practice.
Women who sing and build: feminine strength behind the record
One of the most interesting contributions of the album is not only the message in the lyrics. It is also who appears around Vero Garay and how they surround her.
Vero Garay speaks of a "group of women" who sing and play guitar. And there she adds a cultural component: the feminine strength in Mexico that is rooted in life projects, advancing by sheer effort. She mentions especially the school's director, Gabi Kozelj, to whom she attributes strength, courage and a beautiful life built step by step.
Vero Garay also leans on songs from the record like "Mar canta historias de mujer construyendo sueños" and raises the idea of generational continuity: how what they do interweaves for those who come after.
"Mar sings stories of a woman building dreams… and how they interweave for all of us who come after."
She also mentions the song "las que caminan," which, as she explains, integrates a chorus of friends and close people from Chile. She says they recorded together, gathering people who have been part of her process. That gives the record a texture of community, not only of a soloist.
The words that hold up the album: reconciliation, returning and keeping flowing
In the end, what makes the whole project coherent is the set of words that Vero Garay repeats in different ways: return, reconcile, accept oneself, give thanks, flow, sustain.
Her record, "A Woman Who Returns Singing," feels like a way of turning the personal into accessible artistic language. You do not have to understand all the layers to connect with the songs. It is enough to recognize the emotion.
And if it had to be summed up in a single idea, it would be this: the album proposes a return to the center, using music as a compass.
Key words of the project (to keep thinking about the album)
For those who want to explore the universe of the record with more of a design and cultural-context lens, here are some axes present in the conversation. They are words that recur in the way Vero Garay explains her work.
- A Woman Who Returns Singing
- Puerto Aventuras
- Chile and Mexico
- Day of the Dead
- Reconciliation
- Feminine strength
- Music production
- Vocal evolution
- Singer-songwriter
FAQ about "A Woman Who Returns Singing"
What is the album "A Woman Who Returns Singing" about
The album is built as a thread about a woman who returns singing and who, according to Vero Garay, also returns to her essence, to recognizing and loving herself. The lyrics work as stories that sustain, reconcile and connect with the experience of many women.
How many songs does the record include and are there covers
Vero Garay mentions that the record brings together nine of her own songs and three songs from a Mexican trilogy. These songs are connected to the Day of the Dead.
What influence does Mexico have on the sound
Vero Garay describes the record with an atmosphere of a lot of color, brightness and vividness, mentioning that Mexico has color and joy but also intimacy. Musically she names pop moments and a widening of sounds beyond the guitar and the voice.
Who takes part in the production
Vero Garay mentions as producers or musical leads Alejandro "Janito" Rivera and Gonzalo Maldonado. She also comments that Janito Rivera produces the musical part of the Mexican songs she includes.
Is there a track dedicated to her mother
Yes. Vero Garay recounts that she made a song for her mother, linking it with distance, the pandemic and a process of reconciliation. She raises the idea of accepting the other person as they are, without trying to change them.
How does she describe her vocal evolution
Vero Garay explains that her voice has grown and trained over the years. She says she used to have difficult high notes and that today she sounds rounder, connected to the body and with a sense of a "whole" voice. She also mentions vocal training and the fact of teaching singing as part of that strengthening.
Why is feminine strength important in the record
Vero Garay links the album to an environment where women sing, play guitar and build life projects. On the record there are lyrics that speak of stories of women building dreams and interweaving for those who come after.
What relationship does Puerto Aventuras have with her process
Vero Garay recounts that she lives in Quintana Roo, near Cancún and Tulum, and works with children at the Colegio Puerto Aventura. There she drives creative activities such as having each class make a song in March, something she describes as a seed that begins to blossom.
An aesthetic and emotional proposal to listen to calmly
"A Woman Who Returns Singing" does not present itself as a cold artifact. It presents itself as a map of return: to essence, to one's own voice, to reconciliation and to the support that many women provide in silence.
Seen as a cultural piece, the record also works as a bridge between Chile and Mexico. It includes Mexican repertoire for seasons like the Day of the Dead and links it with a voice that, instead of hiding the past, turns it into the language of the present.
And perhaps that is the simplest and most honest invitation of the project: to listen the way one converses. Not to "understand everything," but to recognize an emotion and keep breathing within it.
