Empress Of, the project of Lorely Rodriguez, has released a new single titled “Dream House.” The track was written following the destruction of her family home in the 2025 California wildfires. Rodriguez shared details of its inspiration in a press statement.
Lorely Rodriguez, known as Empress Of, announced her new song “Dream House” on Friday. The track stems from personal tragedy: her family home burned down during the 2025 California wildfires. After the loss, Rodriguez flew to Norway, where she began crafting the song on a piano. In a press statement, she recounted the moment of creation: “It felt jarring and lonely, not exactly the comfort I was hoping for, but one afternoon I made a little voice memo while playing a piano mumbling the phrase….I wanna build a dream for you. That’s when this whole thing kind of started. Like a little spark. Someone said a phoenix isn’t born it’s remembered and in making this I remembered why I make music.” The song is available to stream now, as first reported by Pitchfork. Rodriguez's most recent full-length album, For Your Consideration, arrived in 2024. In 2025, she put out the standalone single “Blasting Through the Speakers.” Her track “Lorelei” from the album ranked No. 40 on Pitchfork's list of the 100 Best Songs of 2024. This release marks Empress Of's return with music deeply tied to resilience amid loss.
