The effects of the pandemic are something that we’re going to be experiencing for the foreseeable future. With it being one of the most significant things to ever happen that people all over the world experienced simultaneously, it was bound to inspire artists. Jessie Ware, who is nearing the release date for her new album That! Feels Good!, is one such artist and she addresses pandemic life in her own way with her latest single “Begin Again.”
The “Pearls” singer leans on the talents of frequent collaborator James Ellis Ford to craft the song’s sound. He turns in something that sounds almost epic, with piano, guitar, bass setting a mood that successfully strikes the balance between somber and helpful. Adding some sheen to the affair are horns from KOKOROKO, which only play up the song’s extravagance while still keeping things in a dance sensibility.
Lyrically, Jessie gives voice to the thoughts that many were thinking at the height of the pandemic’s lockdown phase. “I work all night / I do my thing / Just killin’ time / Need a friend,” she sings on the song’s chorus. “Is this my life? Beginning or end? Can I start again? Can we start again?”
The songstress continues to keep the dance community working — both literally and figuratively — in the song’s video. Like previous videos for “Free Yourself” and “Spotlight,” she remains the main focus while giving copious amounts of screentime to the large crew of dancers helping to bring her vision to life. It once again results in a spectacle that’s as intriguing to look at as the song is to listen to.
“On a miserable afternoon during lockdown, James Ford zoomed (the song’s co-writers) Shungudzo and Danny Parker in Los Angeles. They were just waking up, it was already dark in London,” Jessie said of the process of bringing the song to fruition. “Frustrated yet completely focused, we set about writing in a new — and unnatural — way over the internet. Dreaming of human touch, escapes to Brazil, beach bodies, holiday romances, all of it!”
Listen to a stream of both the single edit and full version of “Begin Again” and watch the song’s music video below.
