"Strong woman, brave woman/ I want to be in the world you’re building/ She’s got a way of going against the grain," folk songstress Raye Zaragoza desires in her new track, "Strong Woman."
Little did she know, Zaragoza would become the empowered woman she deeply admired just a few weeks later.
Throughout her 20s, Zaragoza told herself by 30, she would have to shift her focus from chasing her dreams to building a family. But after a tumultuous breakup uprooted her life, she invested her wedding money into her career, poetically breaking down all the societal standards she upheld for herself.
In this episode of Positive Vibes Only, recorded at the Taylor Guitars studio, Zaragoza delivers a stripped-down performance of "Strong Woman," using only an acoustic guitar.
"Strong Woman" is a B-side from Zaragoza’s latest album, Hold That Spirit. "This record is a collection of songs about reclaiming your autonomy as a woman, discovering unconditional joy, healing your relationship to your body, and holding onto the spirit within during difficult times," she revealed in an essay for NoDepression.
On July 4, Zaragoza began the Hold That Spirit tour, which ends on Oct. 20 in Hillsboro, Oregon. Zaragoza will be portraying Tiger Lily in a national tour of the "Peter Pan" musical, where she will draw upon her Indigenous identity to reinvent the role.
Press play on the video above to watch Raye Zaragoza’s inspiring performance of "Strong Woman," and check back to GRAMMY.com every Sunday for more new episodes of Positive Vibes Only.