Big Machine Label Group
Release Date: September 22nd 2023
Reviewed by: Jonathan Andre
Lady A – Love You Back – Single (Amazon mp3/iTunes)
Track Listing:
Love You Back
Lady A have been in and around the music business for quite some time. Ever since their self-titled debut way back in 2008, they’ve been steadily releasing albums every few years- and carving out hits like ‘Need You Now’, ‘I Run to You’, ‘Hello World’, ‘American Honey’, ‘Heart Break’, ‘Just a Kiss’, ‘Compass’, ‘Bartender’, ‘What if I Never Get Over You’, ‘Ocean’ and ‘What I’m Leaving For’, to name a few. They’ve been imprinting their mark and impacting the world for the past decade and a half…but it was in 2020 where the band started to make waves. Ever since the murder of George Floyd in May 2020, and reacting to the widespread commercial response to the protests that resulted from George Floyd’s death, Lady A decided that it would drop the Antebellum from it’s name and just be called Lady A…except if we all were to have followed the coverage of Lady A’s journey from being Lady Antebellum to now being Lady A, then we’d know of the name controversy, and while I won’t bore people with travelogue details that can be read on Wikipedia, what I will say about the controversy is this- that while research should’ve been done to see if there was another Lady A out there before taking the Lady A moniker, that shouldn’t deny the fact that Hillary, Charles and Dave are some of the most talented country acts in quite some time, maybe even rivalling Rascal Flatts when they were around. While it was only recently that the band Lady A and Anita White settled their dispute, what the band has continued to accomplish, even with the name change, is the continual creation of reflective and introspective melodies. The band unveiled one of their most cohesive and impactful albums, What a Song Can Do, in October 2021, and we as a site reviewed it here, highlighting standout tracks like the title track, ‘Things He Handed Down’, ‘Worship What I Hate’ and ‘Be That For You’, to name a few. In 2022, the band unveiled ‘What a Song Can Do (Stripped Down)’, an acoustical version of the title track from 2021, while also delivering a new song ‘Summer State of Mind’ in July 2022. Now fast-forward around a year, and we see the band unveil another new song- this time it’s ‘Love You Back’, a bouncy acoustic-pop three minute tune about reminiscing about relationships gone by, and longing to move on and not be stuck in a memory of a relationship, rather than the real thing.
‘Love You Back’ stands at 3:22, and at the heart of the message is this- that we as people who have been in relationships (platonic or romantic or anything else in between) and that have had such relationships been broken down in the past; the song speaks to us, so we can be reminded that what we may hold onto (a memory of our friendship/relationship) is nothing more than just nostalgia. Yes, it can be good for a while to remember a relationship or a friendship, but to dwell in that place, and to keep sitting in that time may not be healthy for healing and growth in the future. Hillary Scott, Charles Kelley and Dave Haywood have created a song that speaks to my own life as well- friendships in my personal life have changed over the years, and even though I may want certain friendships to continue for a longer duration than what was reality, the fact of the matter is this- that I may have to face the fact, that I could be holding onto a memory of a friendship, that could be stopping me from pursuing new friendships in the future. ‘Love You Back’ is a sobering look at what is indeed holding us back, and whether being ok with a relationship/friendship ending (and being at peace with whatever ending it looks like) can allow us to be open to whatever new could come our way. Well done Lady A for such a poignant and compelling song of hope, and encouragement. Looking forward to more music in the form of singles and/or albums, whenever they may arise.
Score: 4.5/5
RIYL: Carrie Underwood, Mallary Hope, Rascal Flatts, Matthew West, Thomas Rhett