Love Letters to musical muses (and friends)

Arca’s own music is immensely collaborative and genreless, incorporating Spanish vocals from global pop icon Rosalía on KLK, Shygirl’s smooth rap on KiCk i’s “Watch”, and Björk on KiCk i’s track “Afterwards.” Her work for others as a writer and producer is immense, aiding in the production of four tracks from Kanye’s Yeezus — “Hold My Liquor,” “I’m in It,” “Blood on the Leaves,” and “Send it Up.” She also produced Björk’s “Utopia,” nominated for a Grammy in 2019.

I’ve included wonderful accounts of friendship and love in alternate publications—the interviews I wish I got but couldn't— as they contextualize Arca’s collaborative spirit.

Björk

Björk and Arca share a special bond, inspiring one another to be better artists and visionaries since their meeting in 2013 after one of Björk's Biophelia tour shows. Björk’s capacity for pushing boundaries in the music industry, creating theatrical live shows, experimenting with sound and genre fusing influence all facets of Arca’s work—and now vice versa. Since 2013, the duo have co-written Björk’s “Notget” and “Family,” as well as “Afterwards” on Arca's Kick I which features Björk’s vocals. They have gone clubbing together, performed together at The Shed in New York, and have written each other love letters for i-D magazine.

"I love you so much and am forever grateful for your gift as a musician to me," Björk told Arca in their i-D article. "I was at a time in my life where I felt monogamy was taken from me, and monogamy in music-making offered to me. Like a miracle. The timing of it was mind blowing."

Sophie

The sudden passing of contemporary nonbinary singer and producer SOPHIE in 2021 shocked the world, their influence seen in the works of Madonna, Vince Staples, and Arca. United in their pursuit of futurism and experimentalism in pop music, Arca and Sophie’s work echoed one another, collaboratively shifting the way music is produced and consumed within pop culture. The duo have worked together on multiple projects, including the track “La Chíqui” on Arca’s album “Kick i.”

"To have been a part of each others’ journey, to have made music with you remains a formative experience that I will always cherish. your genius, playfulness, boldness, and vision continue to shine brightly through the expanse of your art," Arca wrote prefacing the DJ set she helped organize for Apple Music in honor of SOPHIE. "Despite the sorrow that overwhelms me as I write this, the deepest feeling I want to express is that of gratitude to you: thank you for sharing your light with us all through your creativity. I hold you close to my heart forevermore."

Rosalía

Rosalía, a Spanish pop-flamenco artist from Barcelona, produces and writes experimental fusions of flamenco, electronic, reggaeton, bolero, pop, and rap that blend fluidly with Arca's own productions. In 2020, the duo released "KLK," a loud, punchy electronic dance song from Arca's Kick I album.

For Arca's 2020 Interview Magazine article, Rosalía was her interviewer.

"ARCA: Performing is like technology, you know? We use technology to express something human, but the technology is not us."

"ROSALÍA: You can’t forget your humanity."