Getting ‘Elephants’ Released Wasn’t Easy For Rachael Yamagata

Rachael Yamagata spoke with the Philadelphia Inquirer (link has since expired) about the delay getting her sophomore album ‘Elephants … Teeth Sinking Into Heart’ released, an effort that was actually completed two years ago by the singer. The problem was that RCA wasn’t happy with the finished product. “They said, ‘We want you to go back in the studio. We don’t think you have a mass-appeal single’,” she told David Hiltbrand. Rachael resisted the label’s desire to move her in a more commercial direction, standing behind album she describes as “dark but beautiful.” As a result, RCA dropped her, throwing Yamagata into financial turmoil. “I was broke,” she said. “I had to get creative about life in general and keep my chin up about this record. I took a tour with Mandy Moore for a month. I became my own manager, tour manager and business manager. The whole thing took forever.” ‘Elephants’ is out Tuesday on Warner Bros. Records.