New Release – Sometimes by Chenél No.1

New Release – Sometimes by Chenél No.1

Chenél No.1 is a South African songwriter who covers a range of genres from folk to rock. She was awarded the Best Newcomer Songwriter 2022 by the Afri-Indie Indepentent Music Awards. She loves the creative process, often interacts with her fans on social media and is continually honing her craft in songwriting.

“My new song is called ‘Sometimes’. A song about life’s challenges and admitting that they’re knocking you down. Through it all, hope is still there like a flickering light. It’s a sad acoustic song with the opening lines: Sometimes the road is long, sometimes life is hard, sometimes you make mistakes, sometimes you walk away.”

“The song highlights the fact that everyone is going through something and that you cannot control the challenges you face. It’s okay to feel weak and defeated sometimes. Admitting this makes us human.”

“In the end, the realization comes that there’s always hope flickering like a light. Where there is hope, the human spirit has the ability to push through hardships and overcome. In essence this is a very dark and personal song for me. Revealing that my positive demeanor might have little cracks showing and that I also get affected by the world’s issues.”

What are you hoping to achieve with this release?

“I think mental health is an important factor for me as a person. We don’t always realise what others are going through. How they look from the outside doesn’t always correlate to what they are feeling on the inside.”

“For me, this song is an extension of opening the door to conversation about depression, hardship or sharing the challenges people are facing. It’s okay to not be okay. Admitting that is the first step in knowing yourself and I hope that ‘Sometimes’ will give those who listen to it hope that in the end – a bad day doesn’t equal a bad life.”

Is there a story behind the cover artwork? Did you make it yourself?

“As an independent artist I’m very involved in every aspect of my music and everything around it. My initial idea was dark, so I stuck with showing the shadowy face of a statue. I then proceeded with adding paint spatter of dark pink and turquoise across the artwork. I decided that the title ‘Sometimes’ to be vertical with a pink flower covering the letter-o in ‘Sometimes’. For me the flower is symbolic that even though it’s surrounded by darkness, there is beauty to be found.”

‘Sometimes’ will be out 12th January. You can pre-save the song here.

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