Why Troye Sivan Refuses to Make the Same Album Twice

An Instagram DM became “Rush.” “Bloom” started with Troye Sivan thinking it wasn’t working. And after more than a decade of writing together, Troye and Leland are still trying to surprise themselves.

On Unfamous, they break down their creative partnership, how Troye keeps evolving without repeating himself, the stories behind “Rush” and “Bloom,” imposter syndrome, writing for RuPaul’s Drag Race, and what makes the right collaborator click.

Chapters are below so you can jump straight to your favorite parts.

Chapters
0:00 Troye Sivan Introduces Leland
2:09 How Troye Sivan + Leland Met
6:27 Their First Song Together Ended Up With BTS
10:57 Why Troye Never Wants to Make the Same Album Twice
18:43 Why Songwriting Is Mostly Social Skills
22:10 How an Instagram DM Became “Rush”
26:57 Troye + Leland on Imposter Syndrome
29:46 Cirkut, Mark Ronson + Getting Nervous Around Your Heroes
32:34 How “Bloom” Went From “This Isn’t Working” to an Album Title
37:12 What 11 Years of Writing Together Teaches You
43:08 Writing Pop Hits vs. Writing for RuPaul’s Drag Race
47:33 Britney, Janet + the Pop Music That Changed Them
55:55 Why Great Artists Are Secretly Music Geeks
57:01 How Troye Keeps Evolving Without Forcing It
1:03:33 What Troye + Leland Would Tell Their Younger Selves
1:10:42 Gagged or Dragged: TikTok, Gay Icons + Pop Songwriting
1:16:31 The Best Advice for Creative Collaboration
1:18:52 Troye’s Advice to Songwriters: Not Every Collaboration Works

Credits:

Unfamous is hosted by Justin Tranter
Created by Justin Tranter & Morgan T. Stuart
Produced by Justin Tranter & Morgan T. Stuart
Written & Researched by Morgan T. Stuart

Director: Morgan T. Stuart
Co-Director + Cinematographer: Olivia McCrary
Audio Engineer: Mike Sabri
Camera Assistant: Sherrae Rucker

Special thanks to Mark Beaven and Jimmy Knehans
Shout out to Leslie Tranter and Chloe Pappas on Patreon

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