girl in red Releases Authentic New Single “confession” – Music Review

Written by Kelly Schwint

 In her newest song “confession,” girl in red returns to the raw authenticity that she began her career with—but it’s far from a backslide. On February 20th, the Norwegian musician, personally known as Marie Ulven, teased a demo on Instagram and TikTok, of what we would soon learn is “confession.” Eight days later on February 28th, with no further promotion, the demo that became a slightly more polished song, dropped. Written solely by Ulven and co-produced with consistent collaborator Matias Tellez, it gives a small glimpse into the true emotions of the artist. 

With a song that’s only 1 minute and 24 seconds, it may be hard to find a way to convey all that an artist wants to say. But in this case, that’s not a problem. Girl in red fills the simplistic sound with candid lyrics, heavy vocals, and a consistent guitar piece. She does not shy away from making music that is reflective of her mental state. It is hard to imagine a world where the musician strays from her veracity, and this song is no different. The listener can hear the intimate sadness in the singer’s voice. 

It is a bit of a change from her sophomore record, I’m Doing It Again Baby! released in April of 2024. The new song is far less upbeat and pop-centric, but the theme of mental health remains. The lyrics are short, and quite devastating, but refreshingly honest. She sings, “There’s a part of me that feels that I am reaching my end.” While this is a gut-wrenching line, it can feel oddly familiar—both to the listener’s life and the lyricism we have all come to know and love from girl in red. 

In her newsletter, she writes a handwritten note to her fans, opening it with, “Longing for deeper connections and to be direct with you.” With social media making it easy to create a false sense of reality, it is rare for an artist to want to be so in touch with their fanbase. However, with the release of “confession,” girl in red is right on track for strengthening a genuine bond one song at a time.