Summer Bonus: Shura Returns!

Photo by Sophie Williams

It’s actually trippy when you stop to think about it, how the pandemic lockdowns are something we all went through, and while trying to make sense of it all, we’re also trying to act like it never happened. And who can blame any of us, right? For diving headfirst into the return of normalcy (lol) in everyday life. But this is where art, the very function of art, is so vital. It can drive us to reach some form of understanding towards what we’ve gone through, and inadvertently, that’s what my friend Shura has done with her latest album, I Got Too Sad For My Friends.

Beyond having the most relatable title of 2025, it’s also one of the year's most ambitious albums. You can hear the love of sonic textures from the ’60s and '80s while also hearing Shura’s obsession with crafting unique melodies. There’s a beautiful juxtaposition across this album, where there’s a sense of modernity you can feel across the songs that’s being projected by so many of the things we’ve felt but rarely say out loud. How we can all relate to significant moments of feeling isolated, heartbroken, lonely, and confused at what the world has hurled at us. Somehow, we chat about all this and more, along with how Shura acquired that sick armor for the album artwork.

After you hear the episode, be sure to check out Shura’s track World’s Worst Girlfriend on the official New Exchange Playlist. Also, be sure to follow Shura on Spotify and Instagram.