Syncopated beats and synths moving in and out between the production characterized the opening of Chloe Gilligan’s catchy new single, “Go.”
She first caught my eye – or my ears – with her single, “Still With You,” and this follow up is just as good, if not better. I love the pop energy throughout the whole song; per the song title, it seems as though Gilligan is taking advantage of a creative green light, letting the best of her ideas and talent shine through. Out of every part of “Go,” the chorus has to be my favorite. Before she enters in with clear vocals, every beat momentarily stops, giving Gilligan time to piece the silence with a powerful, “I don’t want you/Want you/Want you/To go.” This confession of longing and desire brings the accompaniment in like a beautiful wave crashing over the listener. I love how much Gilligan indulges in pop conventions in this song, embracing the energetic and emotional benchmarks of a great modern song. Gilligan wants it to feel like a love song to a certain extent, saying, "I wrote ‘Go’ during a time when I found myself falling for someone I never expected to fall in love with. I never saw this relationship coming, but it became clearer and clearer that it was working better than any relationship I had ever been in. ‘Go’ captures the moment you realize it’s best to let go of what’s holding you back and embrace the good that is right in front of you." As the days get colder with the approach of fall, I know this song will keep me warm with its notions of love over the coming months.
The music video for “Go” will drop on September 29, four days after the release of the single, and she’s hosting a Zoom meet and greet for ten of her biggest fans later that day. Additionally, she’s doing a takeover of BMI’s Instagram on the 29th, and will be announcing partnerships and takeovers with other brands very soon.
Gilligan, born and raised in Georgia, attended college at Belmont University as a way to launch her career as a singer-writer. She released her debut EP Erase August, which now has over one million streams. This year, she attended Sundance Film Festival as a performer, was selected as an Official 2020 SXSW artist, and was invited to perform at Sofar Sounds in Seattle. She’s currently working on her second EP, which should be expected to be released in the fall.
Review by Tatum Jenkins