Emily Weisband - Not Afraid to Say Goodbye (2020) Hi Res

Emily Weisband admits she never actually planned on being a star herself. But the confidence she gained by hearing her work out in the world changed that and is palpable on Not Afraid to Say Goodbye. Though a short set, it’s full of bold lyrics and personal choices. Emily digs deep for answers, turning the lessons she’s learned into the basis for forthright songs that depict life in the 2020s with openness, nuance, and Insta-story-worthy lyrics. “I don't say this in a cocky way,” she says. “I have a career that I can hang my hat on at the end of the day. I’m grateful for that, so I've stepped into making this new music thinking, ‘Man, I have nothing to lose.’”

Not Afraid to Say Goodbye expertly pairs conversational lyrics with detailed arrangements. It’s something Emily chalks up to steeping herself in classics by the likes of Etta James, Nat King Cole, and Frank Sinatra. She admires those songs’ timelessness — again it comes back to discovering truth, or what remains when everything extra falls away and we see just what matters. That’s where these songs aim to land, from the moving-on message of “Dumber,” to the single-take vocal of closer, “Way I Say Goodbye.” Emily breaks it down: “At the end of the day, we all want to be loved. Why be afraid of sharing yourself with somebody? Why not boldly connect?” Of course, that’s exactly what Emily, the artist, is doing here.