Mariah the Scientist is a Scorpio. However, her connection to the arachnid is deeper than astrology; it’s also the inspiration for her third album To Be Eaten Alive. “With the title, I decided that because some of them are also venomous and poisonous, if you were to eat one unknowingly, it’ll probably make you sick, or it could kill you,” she tells Apple Music. “Depending on how strong it is. You might think that because it’s a small animal that it could be easily consumed or something, but not knowing it packs a punch.” On the self-produced, ethereal and atmospheric album opener “Heaven Is a Place on Earth,” the singer-songwriter has dreams of what her version of the afterlife would look like, promising her lover that no matter what happens, her love will never change. “Maybe it’s best to make some mistakes/The greatest wins are not made from playing shit safe, but I do now/’Cause I got shit to lose now/Dreams of us paintin’ a crib blue now,” she sings with a lilt. “That was the first song I ever produced,” she says. “I felt really proud. It’s my most prized possession. I feel like I did everything. It’s all me. I feel like it’s a good summary of what the project might mean to me.” Compared to her 2019 debut Master, where she deals with the anguish of a failed relationship, and her 2021 sophomore outing RY RY WORLD, where she bounces back and explores her newly single status, To Be Eaten Alive runs the gamut of emotions and experiences of being in love and the complexities that stem from it—whether she’s feeling jaded (“40 Days n 40 Nights”, “77 Degrees”, “Good Times”) or longing for her lover (“Lovesick”, “Good Times”, “Different Pages”). Her lyrics are relatable, vulnerable and unafraid to deal with the idiosyncrasies of being hopelessly in love. “I feel like I’m in touch with my emotions or something,” she says. “I feel like I can express them in multiple ways.” Mariah not only experiments with those topics on To Be Eaten Alive, but she plays around with her sound as well. She delivers melodic verses over bouncy and energetic beats on the KAYTRANADA-produced “Out of Luck”, and she leans into her alternative side on “Ride”—a duet with boyfriend Young Thug.