Mariah Glenn – “If I Sing…” / “No Oxygen”

Mariah Glenn – “If I Sing…” / “No Oxygen” – Singles Review

Alrighty…let’s kick things off with an artist that’s got some great potential this morning, shall we?  I’ve been checking out the music of Mariah Glenn lately…and I dig what I’m hearing so far; it’s way early on into her career from what I understand, so there’s still a long road of evolution ahead of course, but she’s got the right pieces in place to build upon if she wants to make a whole career outta this.  Seems like she does – if you listen closely to the words of her debut single called “If I Sing…” that was released on Halloween of 2020, you’ll notice the entire theme centers around doin’ this whole music thang for life.  She’s got the talents required to do it…but I will remind ya, it’s much more about doing it than it is about saying it dear readers, dear friends…Mariah’s last single “No Oxygen” was released last year, and we’re fast running out of space in 2022.  No better way to do what you wanna do than by doin’ it, you feel me?  If I had Mariah’s voice, I’d be plenty encouraged to stay on this path she’s put herself onto.

So…lemme see…what can I say about good ol’ Mariah and what can I tell ya about her music?  I’ll start by saying there’s more than a few clues to be found in her debut track…some of them are intentional, and some of them actually, are not.  “They say I’ve got this special thing, but I don’t know just how to go about it,” is pretty much one of the most honest, real, raw & vulnerable lyrics I’ve ever had the pleasure of listening to in the context of a brand-new artist – quite truthfully, that’s freakishly profound.  Here’s what I’d tell Mariah about that particular line from “If I Sing…” – it’s not JUST us telling you about that “special thing” – that’s something YOU feel as well…deep down, you know we’re all tellin’ ya the truth.  Self-doubt is completely natural at the beginning of many careers…whether you’re a surgeon or a singer, it doesn’t really matter…any birdie leaving the nest needs to find out if they’re capable of flying, or not.  “How to go about it,” is a whole course of philosophy…”they say it’s never too late, but I don’t know if that’s true,” – I’m not saying she’s right or she’s wrong about that insightful musing…she very well COULD be right – but I’d ask her in return, so what if you’re WRONG Mariah?  What exactly is “wrong” anyhow?  Is “wrong” recognizing you’ve got a gift and a talent and sharing it and then not achieving some level of worldwide fame?  Or is “wrong” having that “special thing,” keeping it entirely to yourself, and not sharing it with anyone, regardless of how happy it makes YOU to use your voice however you can?  It’s the age old question…if Mariah sings a song in the forest, and no one’s around to hear it, is it still a song?  Again…deep down, she knows the right answer – and she KNOWS the right answer, because she can FEEL that connection to music she has…I know that’s the truth, because it’s something that WE can hear in her music when we listen to a song like “If I Sing…” without a doubt.  The only person she’s responsible to is herself and herself alone…like I said, if I had her talent, I’d be singing all day & every day – but that’s me, and not her.  If she truly decides that this is what she wants to do, then trust me, she’ll do it.  She should be massively encouraged by a song like “If I Sing…” though – that’s an extremely awesome debut song, filled with highlight vocals, stunning melody in the way she’s structured her vocals, lyricism that’s as real as it gets…and insightful beyond her years as an artist for sure.  The unintentional part of what she’s written into “If I Sing…” actually comes through the piano, which she had just taught herself to play only a year before.  I look at it from a couple angles – it’s GOOD…I don’t think I’d go as far as to say that I hear the inherent connection to it like I hear in the way she sings a song, but it’s something she can surely build on…I’m sure the odds are that she plays even better now with more time & experience…confidence comes along with that…practice, rehearse, rinse, and repeat.  But that was the hidden clue to me on “If I Sing…” that illuminates her pathway forward.  What if she sang, unencumbered by the responsibilities of having to do anything else – not playing piano, no bass guitars, no DJ decks…just sang with her natural talent.  I have a feeling that’s the best route to take, and it could potentially give her that ability to focus you can hear she yearns for on “If I Sing…” – I’m not saying throw away the piano…but just like in a band, you want to find the real balance of strengths if you’re going to include something else into the music, make sense?  Right now, she’s got the potential to be an all-star singer, and she’s playing decent piano to go along with it…I feel like if she DOES choose to sing, and lets that become her guide…her natural talent & instincts will lead her in the right direction.

As I’ve said countless times on these pages of ours over the past decade – real art takes several levels of evolution…if we’re doing things right, we all look back on what we’ve created and know we could do what we did even better in the present with our sharpened skills & everything we learn along the way.  At the beginning of a career, like in Mariah’s case here – all I really wanna hear are that the ideas are there, and reasons to continue on – and I’m tellin’ ya folks, with respect to that, anyone listening to “If I Sing…” or “No Oxygen” would be extremely stoked about what they’d find.  The songwriting itself is spectacular on both tunes, there are multiple highlights in each track performance-wise as well…like I’ve been tellin’ ya – the ideas and the talent of Mariah Glenn are noticeable beyond the shadow of a doubt.

“No Oxygen” certainly ain’t gonna be the happiest song you’re gonna hear on your playlists, but it’s another extremely insightful single, and deals with the loss of a loved one on a very real level that most artists would never even dare to write about.  Another year further into her career, you can hear things coming together that much more in terms of her playing/singing as well.  Personally, I’m still partial to what she’s written on “If I Sing…” just a bit more, but you won’t really find me complaining too much about a track like “No Oxygen” either…it’s a quality cut that proves Mariah is unafraid to wear her heart on her sleeve and tell you like it REALLY is.  Losing someone we love is not only one of the toughest things we experience, but it’s also one of the toughest things we could ever possibly write about too.  It’s stifling…like you’re getting “No Oxygen” – and once again, you’ll find Mariah’s layered her words with tremendously insightful details that, if you’ve ever lost someone you love yourself, you’ll relate to.  All this being said, it’s in writing songs like “No Oxygen” that allow us the opportunity to write another one day…the catharsis, calm, and peace found within the healing powers of art are unlike any other.  Mariah should be completely proud of the fact that she’s got the courage to write a song like this, proud of the results of her performance, and once again, encouraged to get back in the studio and start making even more music for the future ahead.  Whether she decides to be an artist, or simply a songwriter – that’s all up to her – I’m simply the guy out there on the internet that’ll tell ya she’s got a bright future in this industry if that’s what she wants to pursue.  The piano even comes out bolder, more confident, and more passionate this time around…and you can hear she’s already mastered another key element – the use of space.  She’s got an insightful amount of patience that confirms she knows not to overstuff a song with needless filler – she sings when it’s called for, and she lets the piano speak for itself when it should.  Of all parts in this song, I think it’s the very end that’s the most revealing…the final minute drifts into an undeniably heavy, thoughtful sadness that sounds like she’s genuinely reflecting on her memories and the impact of the loss she’s experienced…and it hits home in an authentic way that’ll move most of you to tears.  That’s the effect of great songwriting y’all…writing from experience…and a connection to music that can’t be faked – Mariah Glenn’s got the magic inside her, and every reason to want to let it out into the world & share it with us.  Music doesn’t need to be happy, or even perfect for us to like it – the majority of us just want something real we can sincerely connect to…Mariah’s got a real gift for creating songs that do exactly that, and while she’s finding her own way out of the dark & into the light, she’ll help others by sharing her experiences, her songs, and herself, with all us listening in the process.

Find out more about Mariah Glenn at her official page at Instagram here:  https://www.instagram.com/mariahglenn

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