Rita Mae utilizes her own stardom to project the imminence of it in her latest single “Big Star”. The character the piece is based upon is a reflection of who everyone wants to be, for a time. The star of the room, the center of interest who doesn’t try to be. But, popularity is never sustainable, requiring the ever dwindling resource of human attention to be maintained. The character shines bright, but doing so runs through all that fuel. She’s true to the stories told about her, but not much else. How can someone be effortless with such expectations, in order to maintain such appearances she must be unattainable and never stop keeping up with herself till she burns out. The song is an intimate work of art, the type of piece so evidently written with a specific reader in mind but so quickly translated to 100 alternates in its listeners’ perspective.
The song begins as a peaceful ballad, lying out the groundwork for the emotive instrumentals to come. It introduces her downfall before it introduces her, presenting the sacrifice for fame and the bounty of it. As Rita’s voice shifts, so does their narrative. Her vocals soften yet become louder, a worrying tone marking her change in speaking directly to her subject. Rita makes this shift harshly noticed, going back and forth from addressing her audience, to their entertainment; skillfully representing the audience’s prominent role in such a story. As the song goes on, her concern grows till it reaches a peak, or rather a drop, as this star seems to fall to Earth. Here, an entire chorus seems to join them in the calling out of this crash. It's an impeccable display of the true value of this attention, a million voices, but not one able to reach her.
Rita Mae is an independent singer and songwriter who’s genre has made them stand out nearly as much as her skillful writing. She combines the best of music into her own sound with almost Radiohead like instrumentals and structure but lyricism and vocals comparable more to pop artists. And she’s done all this by only 23 years old. She’s based in, and originally from, New Zealand where she’s completely entrenched herself in the music scene. Her collaborations and growing audience all predict the rise of a “Big Star”, details of her upcoming releases and access to her existing ones are available below.
Written By Hailey Schap
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