Jackie Hayes Premieres New Single 'omg'

Chicago's Jackie Hayes proudly announces a new EP, There's Always Going To Be Something, out August 13th. To herald the announcement, she shares its lead single and video, "omg" premiered today by FLOOD.

"omg" plays exactly like it reads - a discovery that's made with a weary, dejected sigh. "It's just not as fun as they advertise," Jackie yells as she trudges through thick guitar and a languid drum beat, her voice locked into a continuous melody as if it's a routine. She's making the most of growing older, but she's learning that there's not much to make of it altogether.

"This song is about realizing that I had idealized a lot of aspects of 'growing up,'" says Jackie. "The second verse is specifically about a time where I was missing the drive that I had when I was younger."

Created with longtime collaborator Billy Lemos, There's Always Going To Be Something rallies depicts the woes of a jaded soul in a young person's body. Jackie's vocals sound fatigued yet determined as she rallies against the boredom, despondency, and tragic enlightenment that comes with age. The rumbling, often distorted guitar beneath her provides the kick to carry forward, even if it, too, at times sounds exhausted. Running on the fumes of indie rock, Jackie sings as if using all her remaining energy to let everyone in on a terrible, unavoidable truth: adulthood blows.

No matter how it tries though, adulthood can't keep Jackie Hayes from doing her thing. Earlier this year, she released two standalone singles, "eye 2 eye" and "dead end." More recently, she landed on the lineup for Riot Fest 2021.

Jackie Hayes (born August 17, 1999) is a Chicago-based musician that melds working-class frustrations and the growing pains of young adulthood into driving, passionate indie rock. Raised in Waukegan, IL, Hayes came to music through an adolescence spent sneaking into shows, rejecting a strict Christian background, and working retail to pay her own bills. After a slew of singles garnered online attention and a cult following, Hayes moved to Chicago at age 19 and began immersing herself in the city's new wave of genreless DIY artistry, going on to share stages with the likes of Claud, Role Model, and The Japanese House.

take it, leave it arrived in 2020 as Hayes' debut EP; in moniker and execution, it's a four-song distillation of the ongoing struggle to break free from the monotony of life while finding oneself longing for somewhere to belong. Produced in tandem with Billy Lemos, Hayes indulges her darker impulses with music that surges like a chokehold, and often careens like a nightmare. These are brief, breathtaking glimpses into the mind of an artist slowly carving her niche, powered by an endearing vulnerability - in prose and performance - and unwavering resilience in the face of rejection and entitlement. Entering 2021, she released two one-off singles, "eye 2 eye" and "dead end," both warm ups for her newest project, There's Always Going To Be Something.

Watch the video here:

Photo Credit: Adam Alonzo