Mothers are expected to transition into their new role with ease and poise, but in reality, it is pretty messy. Singer-songwriter Alva Leigh became a mother in 2017 just three weeks after a career milestone performance at the Royal Albert Hall in London with her band, Lewis & Leigh. Her band released their debut album Ghost to critical acclaim and wrapped a UK/Europe tour. But, once she was thrust across the threshold of motherhood, the paradoxes began. Love and fear, loneliness and expectation, Loss and hope, grief and magic. Alva processed the only way she knew how – songwriting. Alva left London during the pandemic with a newborn and toddler, returning to Tennessee to make a new home. Somewhere in between nap time and the nursing chair, she kept writing songs as a sort of reverse magic trick - how not to disappear into caretaking. These songs became her forthcoming album, Wilderness: playful and dreamy pop music with vulnerable and piercing lyrics. Turns out there was hope and catharsis in the making.