Hi, Maya. How are you?

I am so sorry that I missed our earlier time. My mom convinced me last minute to go see her play [Ghosts at the Williamstown Theatre Festival in Massachusetts] a second time, so I just ran into the theater to watch the Wednesday matinee, and I totally spaced.

No worries. You can’t say no to that. How was she?

She was unbelievable. It’s so good. I love Williamstown Theatre Festival. It’s such a creative and powerful environment. It feels really freeing.

It’s been such a summer for you, between Stranger Things, and Once Upon a Time In Hollywood, and now music coming out. Is it scary? Fun? How does being in this kind of moment feel?

I have the privilege of having a little bit of perspective and knowing that what you get in this life, in this career, if you’re lucky, is a series of moments. You hopefully have a few moments like I’m having this summer throughout the course of your career, and you can never expect the energy in a moment like this to last. I got to be a part of Stranger Things, which is something that people love. And I got to be a part of a Quentin Tarantino movie, which is something people love. That’s my great fortune. And then, I got to be a little risky and release something that I created myself with my friends.

Has music always been a part of your life? Did you sing growing up?

Since I was a little girl, I was always writing poetry and trying to put it to music, sitting on the couch with my dad singing old folk songs, like Hank Williams and Townes Van Zandt and Johnny Cash. We would just sit together and sing. That was a big part of the way I grew up. I never had any ambition or real pride in my musical ability. I never had a knack for music. It was never easy for me. I never had the best voice, but I’ve always had a real, great passion for poetry. It seems to me, in this day and age, that the best way to communicate and translate poetry is through music. Being an actor is awesome, but you’re always waiting for someone else to give you a call to offer you an opportunity.