Madison McFerrin has been giving us her brilliance in bursts over the years, with singles and EPs showing us just how talented she is. She’s ready to bring us much more in 2023, however, as she readies her debut album I Hope You Can Forgive Me for a May release. We’ve already experienced the first single, “Stay Away (From Me),” when it arrived late last year. Now she’s granting us further access to what’s to come with her new single “(Please Don’t) Leave Me Now” and its imaginative music video.
“(Please Don’t) Leave Me Now” is spawned from a harrowing experience in Madison’s life, during which she could have easily passed on. Thankfully, she came out of the experience relatively unscathed and even gleaned some artistic inspiration from it.
“Being able to walk away from a near-death experience without physical harm is one of the greatest blessings I’ve received in this life,” she wrote of the experience in a press release. “It reaffirmed my purpose as an artist. Writing ‘(Please Don’t) Leave Me Now’ became an incredibly therapeutic and cathartic experience. Being able to express that kind of fear while still creating a fun environment was key to making this song.”
The experience is reflected in the song, with Madison pairing an introspective yet upbeat groove with lyrics that contemplate her own mortality and her resolve to live in the now. “What is all forgiven / When it’s said and done / Could it be we’re livin’ / All wrong / Takin’ it for granted,” she sings on the opening verse. The chorus, meanwhile, acts as a plea to herself as well as her maker that she be allowed to keep going as she sings, “Please don’t / Leave me now / I ain’t ready / I won’t let you down no.”
The song’s video plays this up even more. Full of color and life, it opens with the singer beautifully dressed as she lies in a grave surrounded by musicians and dancers. When the second verse arrives, so does another Madison dressed in glorious yellow to duet the second verse with her other self in the grave. Once the sun rises, so does she as she dances to the rhythm of life before the clip comes to an end.
Madison McFerrin once again impresses, and we’re sure she’ll continue to do so when I Hope You Can Forgive Me arrives on Friday, May 12th. Stream “(Please Don’t) Leave Me Now,” watch its video and check out the album cover and tracklist for her debut when you hop below. Then stick around to see the singer’s upcoming tour dates, which kick off on March 2nd and take her across the United States and Europe throughout the summer.
Madison McFerrin I Hope You Can Forgive Me tracklist
1. Deep Sea
2. Fleeting Melodies
3. Testify
4. Run
5. God Herself
6. OMW
7. (Please Don’t) Leave Me Now
8. Stay Away (From Me)
9. Utah
10. Goodnight
Madison McFerrin 2023 Tour dates:
Mar 2 – The Continental, San Jose, CA
Mar 3 – Walt Disney Concert Hall, Los Angeles, CA (supporting Ladysmith Black Mambazo)
Mar 13-18 – SXSW, Austin, TX
May 20 – Artyard, Frenchtown, NJ
June 1 – Zebulon, Los Angeles, CA
June 2 – The Independent, San Francisco, CA
June 4 – Hult Center, Eugene, OR
June 5 – Doug Fir, Portland, OR
June 13 – Sleeping Village, Chicago, IL
June 15 – Rambling House, Columbus, OH
June 23 – Creative Alliance, Baltimore, MD
June 24 – Love, Velma, Ellenville, NY
June 25 – The Falcon, Marlboro, NY
June 29 – Elsewhere Zone One, Brooklyn, NY
July 9 – North Sea Jazz Fest, NL
August 10-13 – We Out Here Fest, UK
