Ryn Weaver’s rapid ascension to the pop stratosphere — she emerged last summer backed by Passion Pit’s Michael Angelakos, Charli XCX, Benny Blanco and Cashmere Cat — would be weirder if it weren’t so clear why the “OctaHate” newcomer has so many stars in her corner. There’s a fluttering, quavering quality to her voice that manages to convey confidence instead of timidity — Weaver hovers gently above the track, always ready for lift-off, never struggling to grab ahold of where it’s going. She covers a lot of ground that way on songs like “The Fool,” the title track to her upcoming album, where she’ll spiral off into the chorus’ twinkling high notes before coming back down to earth for the song’s guitar-driven bridge.
But for Weaver, all those moving parts suggest a strong point of view, not a lack of one. “I wanted to write a record that refrained from desperate love songs,” she said of the song on Twitter. “The album has a tone of independence and strength which is something I feel is lacking in female centric music, that is very much present in society.”
- Taylor Swift Is TIME's 2023 Person of the Year
- Meet the Nation Builders
- Why Cell Phone Reception Is Getting Worse
- Column: It's Time to Scrap the Abraham Accords
- Israeli Family Celebrates Release of Hostage Grandmother
- In a New Movie, Beyoncé Finds Freedom
- The Top 100 Photos of 2023
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time