GRACE LEER

                                                                "After 1" 

                                                                19 Recordings

Moving on from a relationship that’s fallen apart comes with an incredible range of emotions, from confusion, to hurt and pain, and the harsh reality that it’s actually over. With her new song “After 1,” Grace Leer packs all these emotions into one 3-mintue package.

Leer, who earned worldwide notoriety when she made it into the Top 10 on Season 18 of American Idol, has since released the kitschy, snappy “Brought A Girl,” toured with Logan Mize after a duet with him on “Nothing with You,” and announced her debut EP – set to release this summer (2022).

“After 1” is not only another teaser of that EP, but intriguingly captures an entirely different side to what Grace Leer brings to the table.

The electronic backbeat through the verses gives this otherwise traditional country bent style a very strong kiss of modern freshness, while later in the song we’ll experience some risky instrumentational ticks in the bridge. However, it’s the bluesy tones she wraps into her voice that elevates this song as the lyric stands in the spotlight as she hits the emotional struggles of the heart tugging song.

We see Leer admitting to herself that it’s starting to hit her current reality that he’s really moved on.

Struggling with her emotions, she confesses through the pre-chorus that she’s cried and cried while trying to get on with her life and overcome the hurt of him leaving.

Understanding that she’s simply hiding behind makeup and a fake smile when she goes for a girl’s night out that’s full of taking shots and pretending that he’s not still on her heart, she sings in the second verse of getting home and heading straight to the bathroom to remove her makeup – a clear metaphor of her taking off the mask to reveal her true self.

Leer perfectly captures the struggle with a heavy focus on the pain and loneliness that comes with it, but as she wraps the lyrics around the broken-hearted listener like a warm hug from a needed friend, there’s also an underlying message of hope in the middle of all of this pain as understanding where you’re at in the here and now is the first step in moving forward from it.

(Review Written By: Jeffrey Kurtis)

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