The first couple of installments of this series have focused on artists I’ve loved since the 1990s. To prove how (tragically?) hip I truly am, I wanted to spotlight a more recent pick. Canadian singer-songwriter Hannah Georgas is the perfect fit.
I first heard Hannah’s single, “Enemies”, on The Verge, Sirius XM’s Canadian rock channel. It’s one of my favorite channels because Canada is home to some amazing artists. You’ll hear songs that simply don’t get airplay here in the USA. I could go on about the state of radio, but I digress.
The song’s slow build and Hannah’s amazing voice had me hooked.
And those lyrics. 😲 The more I dug into Hannah’s music, the more blown away I became with her songwriting skills. Her words are raw confessions. It’s almost as if you’re listening to one side of a private phone conversation.
I connect with “Don’t Go” on a deeply personal level as much as any song I’ve ever heard. It’s an ode to her grandmother, the rock of her family, who’s there for everyone.
But I equate the song with the loss of my mother. She passed in 2015, and this song was released the next year.
Oh, oh God, what the hell would I do?
If you take her, I swear I’m coming too
It’s easy to relate to this kind of feeling. The thought of losing the person you can’t afford to lose. Who hasn’t been there? The timing of it all only heightened the impact. It got me through an incredibly difficult time, and continues to be a source of comfort.
Hannah also has an affinity for one of my favorite bands, The National. Her first album had a song with that name, and her 2020 album “All That Emotion” was produced by the band’s Aaron Dessner. It’s always great when worlds collide like that.
That also produced this haunting duet with The National’s Matt Berninger, “Pray It Away”:
Her latest album, “I’d Be Lying If I Said I Didn’t Care,” also has some fantastic advice. Be sure to look up once in a while. You might be missing out on a “Beautiful View”.
Oh, and money makes people do awful things.
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