But for the two singles “We Both Do” and “Frankly Speaking (I’m Done)” by Austin-based singer/songwriter Caroline Hale, maturity is exactly what you get. With equal parts emotional sophistication, textured production, and an impressive degree of pure craft, “We Both Do” and “Frankly Speaking (I’m Done)” sound more like songs made by a veteran with decades of experience, rather than a young person venturing into the music marketplace for the first time.
Of course, just because Caroline has been on the planet for less than a quarter of a century doesn’t mean she’s a neophyte. The San Antonio native began playing guitar at eight years old, having simply announced to her parents that it was what she wanted to do. Perhaps, she notes, it was the influence of the many music-centered shows on the Disney Channel. “The Disney girls like Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, and Demi Lovato were in everything I watched as a young girl,” she says. “I think they were way more inspirational than I realized.” Outside of her childhood television habits, she absorbed inspiration from across the musical spectrum, from bands like the Beatles and Metallica to artists like Stevie Ray Vaughan and Taylor Swift.
After becoming proficient on multiple instruments, the real turning point came when, at fourteen, Hale gained a mentor. After watching a Hale performance in a teenage rock showcase with his stepdaughter, Martin Strayer - sound engineer, musician, and songwriter who’s worked with multi-platinum artists like Ariana Grande, Madonna, The Chicks, Soundgarden, and many others - offered to guide her through the world of making music. “He essentially taught me how to write songs,” she says. Alongside her work with Strayer, she also studied the pop songs she listened to on the radio. “I’d say to myself: I love these songs, and I want to figure out why everyone else loves them too.”
With no disrespect intended, maturity is not a quality a music fan might expect from an artist who’s only twenty-one years old.
About Me
All of that diligence and practice led to a recording session with producer Gordy Quist from The Band of Heathens, who helped her develop the tunes by emphasizing melodies, adding transitions, and strengthening bridges.
Hale’s first single release is the defiant, pissed-off pop rocker “Frankly Speaking (I’m Done).”
With a clever, almost cheeky arrangement, plain-spoken singing, and powerhouse guitars, the singer/songwriter puts her ex on full blast. “I broke up with my boyfriend as I was going into college,” she says. “Although we were no longer together, we were keeping in touch. Long story short, I found out that he was with another girl that just so happened to be a friend.
I confronted both of them and ultimately the majority of the lyrics in ‘Frankly Speaking’ are straight from the texts that I received from the two of them.” Fortunately, Hale’s ability to channel her pain into creativity paid off. “Although it took the longest to get right, I’m really happy with how the song turned out, and I hope that it resonates with someone who needs it.”
The emotional arc continues with the second single “We Both Do,” which marries a soul-inflected rhythm with folk guitar and Hale’s unvarnished feeling.
“I wrote ‘We Both Do’ when I was going through a long-distance relationship,” she discloses. “Being so young at the time, neither of us knew how to navigate it properly without someone getting hurt. We missed each other a lot, to the extent that it ended up hurting us more than anything else. It's an indescribable feeling, being so consumed by love that it feels as if the entire world is crumbling around you, yet lacking the maturity to mend it. We both loved each other, we both missed each other, we both were confused, we both hurt. We both do...”
From low to high - a natural progression for any life, whether you’re twenty-one or seventy-five.
Like all of us, Hale has gone through some shit and come out stronger for it. Fortunately, she has her innate creativity and strong artistic vision to lead her out of the wilderness, even if it’s not with easy answers in her pocket. “I love listening and creating sad music, especially as I’ve gotten older - I’m extremely inspired by artists like Phoebe Bridgers, Kacey Musgraves, and Maggie Rogers,” she says. “They all have that gift of sharing a painful moment through song. But sometimes when listening to sad bodies of work it’s hard to find your resolution. I wanted to portray, through my work, to whoever’s listening that you are gonna get through it. Everyone comes out on the other side - it’s just a matter of how long and how you’re gonna do it. But there is hope.”
With a full album scheduled for release in 2024, Caroline Hale’s debut singles “We Both Do” and “Frankly Speaking (I’m Done)” herald the arrival of a major young talent, one who intends to be around for a long time. “Music is the only thing in my life that I’ve known I wanted to do,” she notes with conviction.