She grew up reading about the architect she shares a name with. At 15, that story became the blueprint for her debut album.

For as long as she could remember, indie-pop singer-songwriter Julia Morgan had Celeste Davidson Mannis’s Julia Morgan Built a Castle. It’s a profound coincidence that the two share a name. The picture book tells the story of the elder Julia, who defied the odds to become California’s first licensed female architect, designing more than 800 buildings along the way, including Hearst Castle.

As she entered adolescence, the idea of designing a life much as the architect Julia Morgan had blueprinted imposing structures became a powerful metaphor. Especially when Julia was 15 and overthinking everything. During this challenging period, she wrote her introspective and darkly uplifting debut album, The Architect.

“When I wrote these songs, I was confused, lonely, and overwhelmed by existential angst. They are the blood and guts of who I’ve become—they helped me understand myself—and I hope they provide comfort and inspiration for others.”

Today, Julia is a confident, multi-hyphenate creative and 17-year-old balancing high school with a promising showbiz career. She is living the life she mapped out in those foundational songs.

Julia wrote all nine songs on The Architect and co-produced them with LA-based producer and songwriter Stella Smith. The collection brims with a depth of empathy and emotional maturity unusual for a teenager. Julia melds rawly emotive lyrics and intimate storytelling with a richly layered pop sensibility. Her production choices—including strings and narrative soundscape embellishments—add a dynamic dimension to the album. Julia has earned favorable comparisons to Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey, Billie Eilish, and Gracie Abrams.

Interestingly, the brooding, self-analytical nature of Julia’s songs is in sharp contrast to how many people know and understand her. Her sandy-blond, wavy hair, blue eyes, and warm, sunny personality seem to contradict the intensity of her artistry. Furthermore, Julia is a hilarious stand-up comic and a gifted actress.

“People probably see a contradiction with music because they can’t imagine me expressing these emotions,” Julia says. “The truth is that we need to allow ourselves to acknowledge those dark feelings to grow. That’s how we build ourselves as architects.”

Julia may be just starting her music journey, but she has already built an impressive platform as a modern entertainment professional. On Instagram, she has earned 1.3 million cumulative views, and two of her videos went viral with each surpassing 1 million views. She was the Little Anastasia understudy in Anastasia on Broadway and guest-starred on the HBO comedy-drama Divorce, opposite Sarah Jessica Parker. She appeared on the Audible comedy podcast Trust Fall, alongside Colin Jost, Wanda Sykes, Neil Patrick Harris, Rachel Dratch, and other SNL comedians. She was also featured on the comedic audio show The Best Man’s Ghost Writer with Glen Powell. In addition, Julia is a working comedian who organizes and hosts an annual stand-up comedy fundraiser for New York City food charities at Comic Strip Live.

Julia grew up as the oldest of four siblings and displayed her showbiz talents early on. At age four, she spent eight months writing, directing, and designing the costumes and set for a homespun play. She eventually became a working child actress, often getting picked up at the theater at 9:55 p.m. and then rushing home to get enough sleep before school at 8:15 a.m. Unlike many Broadway kids, Julia wasn’t homeschooled. She enjoyed being in the real world and leading a normal life.

For her generation, normal teen life also meant dealing with big adolescent feelings during the pandemic. At 11, Julia picked up a ukulele and began songwriting as a way to process the overwhelming emotions of being a preteen during lockdown. To help her along, Julia’s parents connected her with family friend Stella Smith, who was then a 19-year-old college student studying music at NYU. Stella became Julia’s mentor, and in 2023, Julia flew to LA, where Stella now lives, to record The Architect.

Julia and Stella’s relationship has been crucial to Julia’s blossoming as a singer-songwriter. She honors that influence by working with women across her creative endeavors and shining a light on female narratives on The Architect. The ethereal folk song “Fallen Leaves” explores generational trauma between mothers and daughters with tenderness and sharp insight.

“Performing” speaks to Julia’s insecurities about her dancing abilities, something that has haunted her throughout her Broadway career since she quit ballet class. The notion of “performing” also applies to how arduous it can be to maintain her sunny disposition. “Sometimes it feels like I’m putting on a show for everyone,” she reveals.

The piano ballad “Before the Grave” features a gentle, talk-sung vocal delivery that feels like positive self-talk. The title track is a moody pop waltz partly inspired by the ethereal Celtic music of Enya. Lyrically, “The Architect” is a sonic vignette of Julia Morgan the teenager contemplating the awe-inspiring professional journey of Julia Morgan the architect.

No doubt many girls and women will listen to The Architect marvel at the singer-songwriter, actress, and comedian career trajectory. Hopefully, they’ll explore challenging questions with optimism and compassionate self-reflection. “I learned in making this album that we are truly the architects of our future, and that’s empowering,” Julia says. “I hope it inspires others to build something they are proud of.”