The journey to any successful music career is filled with all kinds of twists and turns. Snow Tha Product knows this firsthand. In her latest project, To Anywhere (out Oct. 21), the Latin Grammy-nominated Mexican-American rapper gets in the driver’s seat to revisit the roads that led her to this moment.

After years of releasing mixtapes and singles, Snow (born Claudia Alexandra Madriz Meza) had her breakthrough moment in 2011 when her single “Holy Shit” found viral success and eventually landed her a record deal. “When I was at the label, I had a project in mind called ‘Halfway There to Anywhere,’” she tells Remezcla. “It was very much me. I’m halfway there, kind of humble.”

Snow’s management at the time decided to split the project in half and release it as an EP. She took the backseat, despite her convictions, and let the powers that be navigate the direction of the release. “That kind of cut my wings,” Snow laments. “I felt like it was very telling of what I went through in the music industry.”

Snow parted ways with the label in 2018 and returned to the foray as an independent artist. This time, Snow is behind the wheel and determined to finish what she started years ago. “I feel like ‘To Anywhere’ maybe needed to drop [now that] I’m as free, as sure, and as secure as I am,” she says.

According to the rapper, To Anywhere, which features collabs with Sante Fe Klan, VF7, Rotimi, Juicy J, and Lauren Jauregui, is comparable to a time capsule. Some tracks were originally recorded years ago, while others were completed only recently. “It’s all over the place, but that’s also true to who I am,” she says of the album’s concept.

One of the ways Snow stayed true to herself was on the lead single “Piña” with Jauregui, a feature she had to fight for. The track, sung entirely in Spanish, is a queer anthem that describes Snow overcoming her shyness to approach a woman that’s been piquing her interest. 

She revealed that singer Mariah Angeliq was originally tapped for the track, but other artists were also considered. “I pushed. I was like, ‘This is Lauren.’ I want this to be honestly gay,” she says, explaining her determination to make “Piña” meaningful and not just a viral moment. “I want this to be a real story of queer, gay panic!”

Snow and Jauregui have since forged a friendship, which she described as key to her life. “[She’s] a very good person, definitely an empath and a healing spirit. She helped me through difficult times that weren’t as public at the time,” she adds.

Another part of overcoming rough times meant creating a work-life balance between “Snow Tha Product” and Claudia the person. She said she intends to stop “playing the game” for others and create projects at her own speed. “I can’t be [Snow] every day. That’s not who I am. There’s a reason I have those chickens and I’m at home at the ranch,” referring to a property she purchased in Los Angeles where she records music and lives with her son. “I’m two different people, and I compartmentalize pretty fucking well.”

This new direction is working out. Over the summer, Snow was inducted into YouTube’s Foundry Class of 2022, a global development program for independent artists. The rapper also has a successful podcast Everydaydays, boasting an impressive 384,000 subscribers on YouTube. Moreover, the official audio for “Piña” generated almost 1.5 million plays on Spotify.

Snow is set to hit the stage at The Novo in Los Angeles, CA, on Dec. 3, where she’ll be performing songs from the new project for the first time. Despite the rollercoaster of emotions, Snow says she’s excited and optimistic for 2023: “Next year, I guess, we’re gonna find out what that ‘To Anywhere’ meant.”

Listen to To Anywhere below.