"The Sky Knows I Exist" is an album for those who feel they don't belong, but choose to show up anyway. Rooted in the idea that the sky knows I exist and therefore I am,the record explores what it means to claim space in a world you had to build for yourself.

The album began when Naaz bought herself a guitar at 26 and decided that she, too, could be a musician. Despite having already produced most of her own catalog and composed for film and theatre, she never truly felt she belonged to the word "musician:' When you do not grow up around instruments, lessons, or creative opportunity, imposter syndrome comes easily. Art becomes something you earn, not something you inherit.

Born into a Kurdish refugee family in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, music was never a given for Naaz. It was something she fought for. Written through her first months of self-taught guitar playing, The Sky Knows I Exist is therefore much more than the story of buyingan instrument. It is an ode to children born outside of privilege. Storytellers without pens. Musicians who grew up without instruments. Artists who believe they are too late. Those who had to survive before they could create. At last, it is a record for everyone who felt like they did not belong, but chose to show up anyway.

Like many kids without access, Naaz first turned the computer into an instrument, using it to release music with urgency and instinct. This album marks a turning point: a return to physical instruments, organic production, and raw performance. Lyrics unfold like chapters of a novel. Compositions keep the flutter in your stomach alive. Vocals are unfiltered and roaring. The record honors the computer for making art possible, while embracing the instruments she had toearn.

Opening with "Bark;' a reflection on wishing humans had instincts like dogs, and closing with the title track, the album comes full circle:

''The feeling won't go away, whether you lose or win.The sky knows I exist and therefore I am:'

The Sky Knows I Exist is a record about belonging, late beginnings, and choosing yourself anyway.