Heather Mae Unveils New Video via Brightest Young Things, Plus New LP GLIMMER Out 9/20

Ahead of International Day Against Homophobia this Friday, Washington, DC-based powerhouse Heather Mae has unveiled "You Are My Favorite," a new video and track from her forthcoming album GLIMMER, due out September 20th. The song, inspired by Mae's own wedding vows, is a tribute to her wife and to LGBTQ+ couples across the globe.

"One night, as I was falling asleep in my wife's arms, I said to her 'You are my favorite,'" Mae told Brightest Young Things, who premiered the video. "Suddenly, in my mind, I could hear myself singing a melody I had never sung before, singing the phrase 'You are my favorite word.' (Which turned out to be the first line of the song.) 'Go to your piano,' I heard myself say. I jumped out of bed and one hour later, 'You Are My Favorite' was alive. The recorded version is the exact version that was written that night. Not one single edit. I pulled my wife out of bed and carried her to the piano, played the song for her, and said 'Millions of LGBTQ couples will walk down the aisle to this song that I wrote about you.'" The video features tender footage from Mae's own engagement and wedding. While it's a love song, it's also a protest song. "Until the day every nation passes anti-discrimination laws for LGBTQ+ people, big and loud LGBTQ+ love will always be an act of protest," Mae explained. "One day, I hope my songs about my wife will be seen as boring love songs, just like every other love song out there, but until that day, I will sing of our love proudly and loudly."

WATCH: "YOU ARE MY FAVORITE":

Heather Mae is here to shake up the status quo with her message: "Feel To Heal." Unfazed by what a typical pop artist today is "supposed" to look like and how the typical pop artist is "supposed" to sound, the award-winning songwriter whose evocative vocals and rhythmic piano style call to mind artists like Stevie Nicks and Sara Bareilles, creates intoxicating music that tackles complex topics surrounding mental health, LGBTQ+ issues, self-love, racial injustice, social inequality, and women's rights. Inspired by her own personal experiences and identities -- a queer, plus size woman living with Bipolar Disorder -- and those of her multifaceted fans with whom she has forged connections throughout her many years of touring across the United States, Mae crafts powerful lyrics and unforgettable music about life's moments -- from the quietly chaotic to the explosive. "Feelin' Crazy," the album's lead single which premiered recently at Billboard, was written to shatter stigmas around mental health and as Mae says, "to own her own crazy." From mental illness, to prejudice, to mental health, Mae champions those whose voices have been marginalized. "I had a goal when I was writing these songs -- for (fans) and for me," she told Billboard. "The messages I get are not 'Yeah, I partied to your songs this weekend and I went on a road trip and blasted your songs.' What I get is, 'I didn't commit suicide 'cause I listened to your song' or 'I came out because of you' or 'I left my abusive partner because of your song.' Those are the messages I get. So f*** this music business; as long as I'm doing the work of keeping people alive, I'm successful."

LISTEN TO "FEELIN' CRAZY" via SPOTIFY // SOUNDCLOUD

In 2016, after an eight-month period of silence to recover from vocal nodules, Mae made a vow: she would dedicate her career to solely write music that made the world a better place. Her independently-released debut EP I AM ENOUGH, which reached #58 on iTunes Pop Album charts, was her announcement to the world. Mae, who was dubbed "the new queer Adele" by L-Mag, envelopes her audience with a message of hope. Her newest project, GLIMMER, is a collection of nine songs supporting that central theme of "Feel To Heal." Within the grooves of the new album, Mae wrestles with the complexities of existing as a human with mental illness. From her #MeToo-inspired feminist anthem "Warrior," featuring a choir of 100+ female vocalists, to "You Are My Favorite", a love song written for her wife inspired by her own wedding vows which will surely be the 2019 wedding soundtrack for LGBTQ+ couples, Mae shows she's nothing less than a powerhouse. She has examined her struggle with Bipolar Disorder from every angle in order to create her most sonically adventurous set of recordings yet -- and to remind us that we aren't alone.

On June 1st, Mae kicks off the co-headlining "Singing OUT Tour," an annual national tour for LGBTQ+ Pride Month, with artist and fellow powerhouse Crys Matthews. This year, the bands will play 23 shows in 15 states in 30 days. Mae's band consists of JJ Jones, the former drummer for queer folkpop supergroup Girlyman, and Joe Stevens, half of duo Coyote Grace who starred in the 2016 documentary Real Boy. See below for dates.

The Singing OUT Tour:

6/1 - Eddie's Attic- Decatur, GA

6/2 - Isis Music Hall - Asheville, NC

6/4 - Spot On Kirk - Roanoke, VA

6/5 - Arts Center Live - Carrboro, NC

6/6 - Jammin' Java - Vienna, VA

6/7 - Smith Opera House - Geneva, NY

6/8 - Philadelphia Folksong Society - Philadelphia, PA

6/9 - Joe's Pub - New York, NY

6/11 - Club Cafe - Pittsburgh, PA

6/12 - SPACE - Evanston, IL

6/14 - CSPS - Cedar Rapids, IA

6/15 - Oxbow Hotel - Eau Claire, WI

6/16 - Music at Moon Palace Books - Minneaoplis, MN

6/20 - Steve's Guitars - Carbondale, CO

6/23 - McCabe's - Santa Monica, CA

6/25 - Freight & Salvage - Berkeley, CA

6/26 - Michael's on Main - Soquel, CA

6/29 - Havurah Synagogue - Ashland, OR

6/30 - Tsunami Books - Eugene, OR

7/1 - Alberta Rose - Portland, OR

7/2 - The Triple Door - Seattle, WA

Photo credit: Rah Foard