Gretta Seabird's new single, "Leaving Everything Upside Down," is an intimate journey through recollection, resilience, and the unfiltered power of song in its purest form. Composed as part of a collaboration between Lee McDonnell and Brooklyn guitarist Jeremiah Brunnhoelzl, the track perfectly captures the act's ability to turn snapshots into meaningful melodic prose. McDonnell, the voice of Gretta Seabird, has experienced one of a musician's worst nightmares, where she lost her singing voice.
"Losing my singing voice was absolutely frightening, and I felt like I was losing my identity," she says. But for all that nakedness, it ends up being the openness that is the bedrock of the track, imparting a feeling that you've been invited into this incredibly personal space. Listening to the track is to make an emotional investment in being young, misunderstood, searching, and optimistic, and her honesty set against the gentle caress of folk-pop and indie rock textures makes "Leaving Everything Upside Down" feel relatable as much as cinematic.
McDonnell craves immediacy and often gives herself strict time limits, relying on raw emotion and intuition to take the reins of her pen. The result is a lyric, melody, and music that dance with a vital, spontaneous, and natural quality, simply asking you to join her wherever she's making her music. Partnering with Brunnhoelzl adds an additional dimension of magic. It sounds anchored, perhaps due in part to the duo's strange writing process: They're sent a guitar track and write lyrics and melody in one day. It's a quick-fire, creative dialogue that allows Gretta Seabird's music to feel immediate and profound.
"Leaving Everything Upside Down" is proof that voice and identity can be rescued by art. Collection's winning combination of folk-pop warmth, indie rock grit, and indie-pop catchiness is yet another standout moment in Seabird's rich history. For the listener, it's a gentle reminder that sometimes the most beautiful music comes from embracing the unknown, leaning into openness, and letting yourself be completely where you are. Gretta Seabird is the proof that, in the tenuous dance of fragility and strength, a rare kind of artistry lies waiting for us to hear, and this single is a beautiful declaration of that fact.
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