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Title: “Try Again”
Artist: Alicia Lena
From: TBA (2016)
Release Date: September 27, 2015
Format: CD Single, Digital Download, Weekly Airplay
Recorded: Avatar Studios, New York City, New York, USA
Genre: Pop, Soul, Blues
Length: 4:29
Label: FREEDOM
Written: August 2015
Writer: Alicia Lena
Producer: Alicia Lena, Nevaeh Martinez
“Try Again” is the comeback single from American pop singer ‘Alicia Lena’. It was written and produced by Alicia Lena alongside Nevaeh Martinez, reportedly for her fourth studio album rumoured to be released in early 2016. The release of “Try Again” marks the first single released from the musician since 2012’s “Last Known Surroundings”. With the musician deciding to step away from the spotlight of the music industry for an extended period of time, during which she has taken on a role at record label FREEDOM and has try her hand at a number of other roles which included a stint as a judge on talent show StarFactory where she mentored Ashley Grimmie. Her role in the industry has been relatively low-key in recent years after Alicia opted to move from the USA to France with her then fiancée, Anthony Jackson, she has since spent the past two years living in France but moved back to Manhattan in August falling the break-up of that relationship and the musician has since begun working on new music once more.
Following the release of her previous studio album “Reign Over Me” and it’s subsequent world tour, Alicia confirmed her intentions to step away from the music industry, she cited a number of reasons for this decision, however the biggest reason was because she had fallen out of love with the industry at that time, she stated;
“These last few months, years even, have been truly incredible, it’s been the greatest time of my life and I have each and every one of you to thank for that. It’s the people like yourselves that purchase the music and come out to the live shows that deserve the praise, without you all I wouldn’t be able to make a career in the music industry and I honestly cannot thank you enough. However, I feel that the time is right for me to take a step away from the music industry, after four years that have brought me the greatest moments of my life and at 25 years of age in an ever evolving industry I feel like I need to take an extended break for the next couple of years at least. I will hope to return at some point in the future, maybe when the inspiration returns.
One of the main reasons for this decision is because I have simply fallen out of love with the industry, to be part of a musical landscape that includes names like Sam Cooke, Otis Redding, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin, Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, Prince and so many other awe inspiring people is something that pushed me when I was attempting to break into the music industry, the music that those iconic figures crafted was the inspiration for getting into the industry and attempting to create songs that could someday stand alongside the likes of “Change Is Gonna Come”, “Like A Rolling Stone”, “It’s A Man’s World” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water” was the sole inspiration for trying to break out into the music world, I may have fallen short in my attempts to create songs that may someday be considered American classics but I can be proud of my efforts.
However, having seen how the industry has moved within the past year has been a rather uninspiring and worrying thing. It’s no longer an industry that exudes class, dignity and respect. I wonder where the artists that believe that their words can have a lasting effect are right now, because I can only see a handful of musicians that appear to genuinely take their craft seriously, where are the Sam Cooke’s and Aretha Franklin’s of the future? I do see some glimmer in the shape of a handful of artists and I hope that they can continue to make music the way that they have been doing so, with class and hopefully they can inspire the next generation in the right way. Here’s to hoping, at least.”
Her reasons were perhaps questioned by many in the industry, but the scope of the music industry has changed so dramatically since the release of her last album three years ago, some wonder where Alicia will fit in the current climate of the industry. Her songs are primarily based around positivity, hope and faith in a similar vein to those that have long since been part of the industry. It’s unknown whether Alicia can be as successful in the industry as it is today.
“Try Again” is the fourteenth official single to be released in Alicia Lena’s career and is the first new single released from the musician since 2012. It’s rumoured to be the first song from her next studio album which is expected to be released sometime in 2016 and cement her place in the music industry once more. The song was written by Alicia in August 2015 during her return to living in New York City and was recorded later that month alongside Nevaeh Martinez at Avatar Studios where she recorded the majority of her previous releases. The song will be released through FREEDOM as a CD Single, Digital Download and Weekly Airplay release and will be available from September 27, 2015.
ROLLING STONE REVIEW;
It has been the longest time since we last heard an Alicia Lena single, of course some die-hard fans will remember the release of her mixtape “Almost Grown” at the end of 2014, but the mainstream audience hasn’t been invested in the musician since she left the industry back in 2012. It feels like such a long time ago, perhaps it’s because the industry is so different today. There are a handful of artists still around that were peers of Alicia’s back then, but the majority of the industry is full of people who hadn’t broken through last time we saw Alicia doing what she does best. The comeback, if that is what we’re calling it, is a bizarre one. Simply because she talked about how the industry had changed so much when she announced her hiatus, the industry has changed a whole lot more since then and has moved even further away from the ideas and beliefs that Alicia projects with her own music. The biggest question regarding her return to the industry is whether there is a space for her music in the mainstream scope of the industry today. I mean, that question alone says a lot when you consider just how dominant and prolific the musician was back in the day. She was cited as an inspiration to the younger artists breaking through in 2012, some of which have become giants of the industry. But because of how much the industry has shifted, the questions are certainly valid.
So lets get to the song. It’s a piano and a voice, the echo and the power of her vocal delivery, it all just comes flooding back in one instant wave. It’s like we’ve been transported back to 2011/2012. The worry was that she would try to change who she was as a musician in order to fit in, electronic backdrops and auto-tune, but when you have the vocal power that Lena possesses, bells and whistles are certainly not needed. But where the heart of her music lies was always in the lyrics and the themes of her music, the imagery that she presents and the hope and inspiration that she provides through her words are what made people gravitate towards her. Taking inspiration from the likes of Sam Cooke, Otis Redding and Simon & Garfunkel, she lets the power of a voice matched with words that are true and strong guide her and she does so on her return.
The theme is one that she may personally feel strongly about, having returned to the United States following a break-up of a four year relationship and pretty much a three year hiatus from making music, she is emphasizing the importance of picking yourself up and dusting yourself down, ready to try again. She sings a positive message through the chorus, “See if at first you don’t succeed/Listen to the advice that your soul will plead/Close your eyes and count to ten/Get back up and start again/Close your eyes and count to ten/Try, try again/Try, try again.” it’s an old statement, but it holds true and it’s one that you’d imagine Alicia feels very strongly connected to. She will surely have those doubts swirling around her mind, whether she can still be one of the biggest names in the music industry once more, or whether her time has passed her by. Those questions will have no doubt been running through her mind when she wrote this song and until she see’s how people react to her return, she will be in doubt.
From our perspective, she certainly picks up where she left off back in 2012. The question is whether that is enough. It’s great to hear that familiar voice once again though, that much is clear.”
LYRICS;
“When things fall apart, it’s like everything goes all at once
You feel like your whole world is crumbling down
The weak sit around and wonder why
But the strong get back up and give it another try
And with every fall they rise back up
Never one to give up
They won’t let anybody beat them down
Never one to give up
They’ll find their feet on solid ground
Have you ever felt like you can’t go on
Like everything you’ve ever known has simply gone
Do those late nights wear you down
Like sleep is not a friend
Does it feel like you can’t go on?
Please just try, try again
See if at first you don’t succeed
Listen to the advice that your soul will plead
Close your eyes and count to ten
Get back up and start again
Close your eyes and count to ten
Try, try again
Try, try again
Try, try again
Try, try again
Try, try again
Try, try again
Everything you’ve ever wanted
Is within arms reach
You’ve just got to take your chances
You’ve just got to remember to believe
To believe in yourself
To believe in your heart
To believe in the beauty
To believe you were born to play this part
Have you ever felt like you can’t go on
Like everything you’ve ever known has simply gone
Do those late nights wear you down
Like sleep is not a friend
Does it feel like you can’t go on?
Please just try, try again
See if at first you don’t succeed
Listen to the advice that your soul will plead
Close your eyes and count to ten
Get back up and start again
Close your eyes and count to ten
Try, try again
Try, try again” |
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