In my *other life* I work in a bookstore, and as the UK starts to open up again, I’ve been back at the shop setting up the store with all of the shiny new books and welcoming aaaaaall the customers back. It’s strange after so much time spent at home watching birds and pottering around in the garden, and I miss being able to spend so much time on the blog when I’m there. Luckily, there is almost always a recent discovery stuck in my head – this one has been there a lot over the past few days. New from 23 y/o US artist Wallice, the track is Hey Michael. It arrives with news of her debut EP Off the Rails this Summer, and features her close friend and producer marinelli, assuming the role of ‘Michael’ for a verse.
On the track, Wallice shares: “Hey Michael’ is a revenge anthem for anyone who has encountered a gaslighting, manipulative person. It’s what I wish I would have said to all the ‘Michael’s’ I have met in my life. It can be substituted by many names, we all know or have met a ‘Michael’ though. Somehow the world revolves around them and they just can’t catch a break, because they never do anything wrong and it’s usually your fault. You should have listened to your gut instinct and swiped left on this Michael. This isn’t a man-hating song, it’s just something many people can relate to. Sometimes it’s embarrassing to admit just how bad a friend, date, or romantic partner was and a lot of the time, I would just smile and laugh off stupid remarks but when I think back, I wish I had told them off. But at the same time, my persona in the song is not the best person either. I literally say “I think I want to start a fight, which one is your girlfriend?” The whole song is funny because I am so focused on how shitty Michael is that I don’t even think about how shitty I might be as well.”
I love the video – directed by Phil Stillwell, it shows Wallice stuck at a houseparty, encountering various ‘Michaels’. Playing on the lyric “hey Michael, you American Psycho” Wallice herself is dressed in a Patrick Batemen-esque business suit, channeling his comically dark (oh, very dark) energy. Watch for yourself above.
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