i suck at grieving is out and it feels WEIRD WEIRD weird i hope that anyone that needs it, finds comfort in the fact that it’s impossible to NOT suck at grieving: https://t.co/wfmV3hROK6 pic.twitter.com/p0AtAdqRLV

— Lauran Hibberd (@lauranhibberd) September 21, 2023

The song marks the first new music to come from the power pop artist since the release of her last single “Honda Civic” and her debut album Garageband Superstar. The singer stated that the song is for people who do not know how to interpret their emotions or who are reluctant to begin the grieving process.

Hibberd’s father sadly passed away in 2022 and she said of the song, “I guess eventually you run out of stuff to laugh about, and have to look life or in this case death straight in the eye. I lost my dad last year, and I changed in an instant but forever.”

The singer added, “I found everyone’s advice on grief painful and inappropriate, and I couldn’t work out why I couldn’t grieve like the internet told me to. This track feels like an extension of me, and I know it’s not my usual tricks but it feels more me than anything I’ve ever made before. This is a song for people who don’t want to grieve, for people who don’t know where to start, and for people who don’t know how it ends.”

It has been a steady rise for the young pop singer, who certainly seems like she has all of the key ingredients to cement her place as a pop icon in years to come. Hibberd began playing guitar at the age of 14 and started writing her own songs shortly thereafter. After releasing a string of singles and a few EPs, Hibberd finally dropped her debut album Garageband Superstar last year to mostly favourable reviews.

Known for her witty lyrics, slacker punk attitude and sonic signature, Hibberd has never been one to shy away from the more heavy subject matter, although the singer maintains her light-hearted positivity throughout. With “I Suck At Grieving,” Hibberd is venturing into what is perhaps uncharted waters for the singer, as she attempts to where her emotions on her sleeve. The song will no doubt touch upon a tender chord for her growing fanbase around the world.

Hibberd recently wrapped up a UK tour in support of US alternative rock band, All Time Low and is about to rejoin the band for their North American and Australian tours with Payday Parade and Gym Class Heroes.

View this post on Instagram

Fall is now here, what a perfect time to welcome English poet and artist @keatonhenson and German pianist @niklaspaschburg. See you on Tuesday at 7pm Paris/Berling, 6pm London, 1pm New-York, 10am LA live on Instagram. #StayAwayShow

A post shared by La Blogotheque (@blogotheque) on Sep 27, 2020 at 1:18pm PDT

Keaton Henson debut album Dear came out in 2010. It was a collection of ten beautiful songs that he initially made with no intention of releasing them to the public. This makes sense considering the deeply intimate feel to the songs, which are rich with emotion.

Keaton’s voice is the type that comes directly from the soul, moving its listener entirely. You Don’t Know How Lucky You Are, the second track on his debut album, is an evocative tale of heartbreak addressed to a former girlfriend . Keaton shaking voice asks ‘Does he know not to talk// about your dad? Does he know when you are sad?… Does his love make your head spin?’. 

These words, sung with delicacy and feeling and underpinned by simple guitar, caught the attention of Zane Lowe. Lowe played the piece on BBC Radio 1 saying: ‘This piece of music right here… is one of the most special pieces of music I’ve heard for a very long time’.

This exposure helped Henson gain the recognition he deserves, and since then he has been shortlisted for an MVA award and his songs have thousands of plays on Spotify. Despite this success, the London born singer suffers from chronic anxiety and has never been comfortable with live performance.

He told the Irish Times in 2019 that he ‘doesn’t like performing or anything that veers into that territory’, going on to speak about how even going to the shops to buy a pint of milk can be difficult for him. His most recent album, Six Lethargies, released in 2019 was a six track collection of movements for a string orchestra.

These ‘aimed to express and explain the feelings of anxiety and depression that he feels’, and this is certainly achieved. One would be hard pushed to listen to The Falling or Unease Concerto without feeling the pain in the strings that are played. This has always been Keaton’s biggest strength as a musician: to move his listeners through his music in the way that great artist like Bon Iver do.

His most recent single, Husk came out in September this year and though it had a more upbeat rhythm section, it still explored feelings of heartbreak and loss. This track was released in advance of his upcoming album, that is due for release on October 23rd. His performance on La Blogothèque will surely be a touching one, made all the more intimate without the crowd watching.