Eighty Ninety Release New Single/Video "Stay Alive"
Eighty Ninety — the indie-pop project of brothers Abner (vocals, production) and Harper (guitar, production) James — return with “Stay Alive,” the new single from their forthcoming debut album.
Following the album's lead single, “2 Carat,” “Stay Alive” is a song that teems with raw, intense emotion. With no guard up, Abner delivers a refreshing account of his struggle with mental health. He adds, “‘Stay Alive is about how our struggles with mental health can affect our relationships and how the things we do to cope and the people we love — and who love us — can help to get us through life’s hardest moments. For my whole life, music has been one of the tools I turn to as a listener and a musician, but I’ve never directly addressed it in a song before.”
Finding himself at a low point, Abner sat down at the piano and “Stay Alive” unfurled from there. From there, the duo transformed the confessional ballad into an uplifting pop tune that promises better days ahead.
“The song is a promise to be there for myself and an acknowledgement that the more grounded part of me knows that those feelings pass, and I'll make it through to the other side,” says Abner. “My hope is that it can also be a loving reminder to anyone else going through a hard time — and a promise to our audience that through our music we are and will always try to be there to help provide comfort and joy to anyone who listens.”
The accompanying music video, co-directed by Abner and Olivia Kimmel, captures the melancholic air of the song. Abner elaborates: “Shooting in a dreamy, vintage, almost unreal feeling and isolated setting felt like the right metaphor for that state of mind - and saving the only real sunlight for the final shot was our way of showing that ultimately this is a winnable fight, and an optimistic song."
Listen to "Stay Alive" on all streaming platforms:
https://ffm.to/stayalive8090
Watch the "Stay Alive" music video:
https://youtu.be/hc3uFBAzf8U
About Eighty Ninety:
Eighty Ninety is the project of Brooklyn-based brothers Abner (vocals, production) and Harper (guitar, production) James. They fuse intimate storytelling, sticky melodies, and minimalist pop productions built on acoustic instruments and electronic sounds in a style they call “808s and telecasters” — a shorthand for both their music and their anything-goes mentality in the studio. To date, they've racked up over 31 million streams across their singles and two EPs - 'Elizabeth' and 'The Night Sky' - and have received glowing reviews from tastemakers like Billboard, Alternative Press and Ones To Watch. Their debut LP is due out later this year.
