"I think the song is very emotional and meaningful," Omar told us of "Evergreen." He continued: "I knew that there was the part everyone was making videos of, but when I made it I definitely wasn't thinking about like, ‘Oh, TikTok’s gonna love this.' But afterwards, I was like, ‘Oh, wow, TikTok is really going to like that part.'"

The success of "Evergreen" didn't come overnight, though. "I was attempting to do videos, and then nothing happened and it wasn't until somebody else made one, and then it started going and then moving in that [direction]," he explained.

Nonetheless, Omar is simply remaining curious and grateful. "It's very interesting to see how things work these days," he noted. "I love it. I'm into it."

Deeply profound messaging exists all throughout "Ivory," but another standout emotional track from its deluxe edition is "Pretty Boy," a candid reflection on what Omar considers the "innocence of queer love." The track was actually inspired by James Baldwin's 1956 novel Giovanni's Room, which struck a chord with Omar when he read it.

"It just really put me somewhere and really painted something visually," he said of its influence on his creative process.

"[It was] kind of like one of the few times ever that something I read inspired a song or, you know, resurfaced emotions," he further reflected.

On the general folksy energy that is conveyed through much of "Ivory," Omar cited "listening to a lot of Johnny Cash and Neil Young" as the inspiration to include more haunting strings in his melodies.