Björk on finding balance between intuition and technical precision in her music: “I do think I’m programmed to separate the left brain and right brain”Björk has opened up about her creative process and the importance she places on not over-analysing her “melody and voice”.
In a wide-ranging new interview with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, the iconic Icelandic singer-songwriter takes us behind the scenes into the making of Cornucopia, the ambitious concert tour and theatrical production based upon her ninth studio album, 2017’s Utopia.

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When asked how she finds emotional space in her performances, Björk admits that she doesn’t consciously decide where her ad-libs or phrasing choices come from.
“I actually don’t know,” she says. “That’s the beauty of ad-libs.”
Björk, who’s credited as the show’s creative sound and visual director, among others, also speaks about finding balance between intuition and technical precision in her music.
“I do think maybe I’m programmed to separate the left brain and right brain… like my melody and voice, I’m super protective of it,” she says. “Just [so] that it’s instinct run and driven, and not to let any analysing or scrutinising energy on that.”
“But I can nerd out on bass, subbass, animation and reverbs.”
As for whether or not her music has to be “peak right brain” for her to feel comfortable to release it, or if she can “let it go for the people” even if she doesn’t “feel it”, Björk acknowledges that with age, she’s become more holistic in her approach.
“Like the ceiling of a cathedral you know, there’s like a thousand pieces and it takes two years to make, so you’re trying to get the whole. So that is a very feminine sort of cohesive energy – you’re making sure all the pieces are there,” the musician explains.
“With this Cornucopia beast I was part of everything. I was there when it was mixed, I was there when it was mastered, I was there when it was edited – I was in every single process of this.”
Elsewhere in the chat, Björk also reveals that she’s got new music in the works that’s “opposite to Cornucopia”: “It goes to some other dimension.”
Watch the full interview below.

Last month, Björk expressed her dislike of the streaming giant Spotify, calling it the “worst thing that has happened to musicians”, adding: “Streaming culture has changed an entire society and an entire generation of artists.”
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