Maybe that’s because she grew up right around the corner. Before establishing her stage alias, which derived from a tarot card reading, Lorely Rodriguez was raised in L.A.'s suburbs (yes, Pasadena is L.A.), keenly aware of the giant block letters spanning the Hollywood Hills. Yet, despite living a brief-ish freeway drive away from the music industry’s hub, the now 34-year-old’s music inspiration stems from her childhood. In a Honduran American household where the rhythmic beats of Latin music bounced off the walls, vibrant melodies from Central American genres like salsa, merengue, and Punta—a distinct Honduran style she recalls playing at all hours shaped Lorely's musical journey. But, it wasn’t until she discovered pop divas like Celine Dion, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera that ‘Empress Of’ was born, and she began to envision an authentic sound for herself; one that would meld 90s pop with the language and tempos that found her communication. She shares, “I love modern Latinidad and just making it what you want... I can be an alt-pop girlie and be a Latina and be Honduran American.”

This innate identity consciousness led Empress Of to release her debut album, "Me," in 2015, a synth-heavy ode to self-expression, growth, and dance synergy. Since then, similar to her developed taste for martinis, Empress Of has clarified her palate and now flirts with an exploration of sound and self she hasn’t poured into her music before. Her newly released fourth studio album, titled, “For Your Consideration,” finds the artist amid an L.A.-core love triangle enmeshing the singer, a director, and Hollywood. The 10-track anthology excavates the incandescent emotions of Empress Of’s post-breakup world, channeling them into a sensual awakening. “I'm a songwriter, so everything ends up as a song,” she jokes. “The song “For Your Consideration” was the first song I wrote for the record. It came from having a little relationship with a director and having a bad experience from getting love bombed and then just trying to take control into my own hands.” As she interlocks her fingers, adorned by long acrylic nails, it’s clear that Empress Of doesn’t mean control in the context of discipline, but rather control in the context of her narrative.   

Postbreakup, Empress Of has been writing herself into the script for new-age Hollywood glamor. She tells me that during awards season, all she could notice, driving around were the ‘For Your Consideration’ billboards plastered across L.A.. Whether the consideration was for the Grammys, Emmys, Golden Globes, or Oscars, Empress Of self-debated her own definition of ‘consideration’, ultimately concluding that there’s only one critic worthy of demanding attention from—herself. “We see billboards all over [L.A.], and it's such a part of the industry… I was like, I already consider myself. I'm just going ahead and choosing myself.”

Further hitting the nail on the head of this newfound credence, Empress Of’s latest album cover art prompts audiences to reconstruct the validation we are looking for into the validation we are deserving of. “The [album] artwork is me on a star over the backdrop of L.A.—me naked, completely painted gold, being a statue like I'm already a prize. That's how I feel with the record. I already know this record is noteworthy.”