“Bella had always wanted to be a filmmaker and she now has her own company called Rebel Motion in New York, where she is based.”

“The work that she does is so impressive. She’s also spontaneous (yet 100 per cent in charge) and flew into Los Angeles, where I was, to do the video for Blue.”

“I never had a doubt in my mind that Yang would be an amazing collaborator. She puts in 110 per cent in everything she does and invest emotionally and conceptually more than anyone could ever ask for.”

“Everything that she does, including her work for my upcoming film which is aimed for release by April, has veracity and weight, and you can feel that. I think that’s what it means to be an artist.”

“Nydia (she goes by one name) is like a sister to me. She has taught me so much about what it means to be human. She brought back a lot of the things she learnt being a liberal arts student in the United States, like learning to draw boundaries and stand up for myself.”

“Creatively, I love her wackiness – she was creative director for Blue (pictured) – and is campy and willing to experiment. She’s also such a solid person with her advocacy of safe spaces for marginalised groups.”

“Polina was the art director for the artwork and video for Outta My Head. I love how her work is so grotesque yet colourful at the same time and I thought that she would be able to bring out the demented energy of the song without a male gaze. The girl singing it is not crazy.”

“She was also the one I went to when I literally had this dream of being covered in glitter and walking through the CBD, an image that ended up becoming a photoshoot that accompanied Blue. The idea behind that was a commentary on being a cog in the machine. Her first question to me was not how or when I wanted to do it, but why, because she knew what it would involve – that such performative art would mean people would want to come up to touch you and also that glitter is just so hard to get off.

I always come back to the word ‘serendipity’ because she is someone who gets me. I wanted a chance to detach myself from my identity and body and just be a creature because that’s how I feel when I am depressed. I love how she got it – again, serendipity. I don’t have to mansplain my position. And I love how throughout this creative process, I would go, ‘I have this idea, but I want you to be free and do what you want because I want your part in this’.”

“Jed (who prefers to be known by one name) is a personal friend whom I’ve always thought of as an incredible scriptwriter. She conceptualised and wrote the script for my film in a month and a half. Even if you don’t know her, she’s someone you would be willing to work for.”

“She’s witty and trustworthy. Why I love working with women is the synergy and energy; they care about how people are feeling. As busy as she was, she always made it a point to sit down and ask how one is doing. Her work has received interest in the States and she deserves more opportunities.”

“Putri – who did the styling for all components of the third segment of my musical project – is so talented. She is a young talent whom I just want to hug. We are both Libras.” 

“My favourite outfit that I’ve ever worn is actually one that she had created for her graduation. I vibe with her style.”

“Both of us went through this period of being quite wild and have had to find our place in society, having grown up in the public eye. That’s why the first thing I said to her when I approached her to be the creative director for the video for Outta My Head was that I knew she would get the song and what I was trying to say through it.”

“Mae and I are very similar in the way we move through the world: We can be a little aloof but also very deep, and at the same time, playful. And even though it was the first time she had done anything like that, isn’t part of the fun being able to have the opportunity to do new things?”

A version of this article first appeared in the January/February 2021 Art & Music Edition of FEMALE