Heartache is a side effect of the end of a relationship. SHY Martin always seems to have the right words to capture these feelings of melancholy bittersweet endings.
When I heard this song I told my friend to set an alarm for the release time and play it as soon as they could, they weren’t familiar with SHY but my go-to description of her sound was the feeling of when you feel your heart being pulled in a bunch of different directions and even though it hurts, you still want to see the good that was there.
This song feels like a reflection on her past relationships, how the past has reshaped her view of herself in relationships. There are elements that strengthen the relationship and things that make you feel like things are just falling apart. SHY Martin's bold lyrics and vulnerable melodic vocals hover over a dreamy guitar-based bedroom pop production as she takes us through the intoxicating mixed emotions that arise when two people become strangers from one another.
I heard an alternate story in the lyrics but maybe that’s my internal hopeless romantic doing the talking. I think about her saying “stay with me, break with me”. The ups and downs together make the relationship what it is. A collection of just the highs isn’t the reality. Staying together and working things out over time even with the challenges, the fights, the hopeless moments of stress, maybe letting go could hurt for another reason? Some things are worth going through the rough for.
“This year has been overwhelming in many ways. For the first time in years, I have spent a lot of time with myself and taken the space to reflect. I have thought a lot about how these strange times we are in have changed so many relationships, some that have become stronger, and others that have broken down. We started writing "Break With Me" one summer evening in the car on the way home from a lake, but I relate to it now more than ever", says SHY Martin. “During the year, I also thought about how I want to work with my music and chose to start my own record label to have full freedom every step of the way. This is the first song I will release on my own label, so it feels very special.”
The single is released alongside a music video consisting of a collection of clips filmed by SHY Martin and friends from around the time the single came to life during the pandemic in Stockholm. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/T6sOAfTOu6A
“When I was growing up, my parents had a video camera with them wherever we went, so handycams always give me a feeling of nostalgia. After watching old videos from my childhood, I decided to buy one myself to capture moments here and there. The video that my brother and I put together for "Break With Me" is a collection of clips from the time we created the song ", she says.
"Break With Me" is written by SHY Martin, Nirob Islam, Hampus Hjellström and Litens Anton Nilsson. Produced by SHY Martin, Felix Flygare Floderer and Carl Silvergran.
SHY Martin first established herself as a songwriter, a path that launched in dynamic fashion via her co-write and featured vocal on Mike Perry’s "The Ocean (ft. SHY Martin)." Recording the vocals in one-take in her home wardrobe (after a tonsil operation!), SHY wrote the track with longtime Swedish songwriting partner, SHY Nodi, and the track went on to win Spotify Sweden's Most Streamed Song of the Year’ with a groundbreaking 630 million streams. SHY's songwriting catalog has gone on to generate 2.5 billion Spotify streams including credits on "First Time" by Kygo ft. Ellie Goulding, "(Not) The One" by Bebe Rexha, "All We Know" by The Chainsmokers, "I Wanna Know" by NOTD (ft. Bea Miller), as well as songs for Jess Glynne, Astrid S, and ALMA, among others.
Raised in the small town of Lerdala, Sweden, SHY Martin first began writing songs and poetry in her youth as a means of self-expression. "I was never good at talking about my feelings, so I wrote them down instead. When I was sad, my mom and I wrote letters to each other. I sang almost more than I talked, so expressing myself through music became natural", SHY describes.
In addition to her artistry, SHY is a champion for philanthropic causes, notably joining Spotify CEO/Founder Daniel Ek and songwriter/producer Max Martin's coveted 'Equalizer Project,' a group aiming to combat gender inequality in the music industry. SHY also participated in Bebe Rexha’s 2018 'Women In Harmony' Dinner in Los Angeles, a gathering to empower female artists in music including Charli XCX, Kim Petras, and Avril Lavigne. She also performed alongside Matoma at the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize Concert.
Review by Hannah Schneider