Over winter break, I listened to a lot of music. While I was getting ready, while I ate lunch, before I went to sleep at night, I was listening to music. Last semester, I focused my blog on spotlighting independent/small artists. This semester, I’d like to focus more on the specific artist, song, or album I happen to be listening to a lot that week. Still, more often than not, that category will include an independent or small artist! A lot of the music I listen to happens to be by lesser-known artists and bands, but not all of it is.

This week, I’ve had “More Like You” by Orla Gartland on loop. Orla Gartland is an Irish singer-songwriter who gained popularity by posting covers on YouTube. Now, she has over 700,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and 16 million total views on YouTube. “More Like You” is her most recent single, following her EPs Why Am I Like This? and Freckle Season. 

The song talks about the struggle of wanting to be someone else because of how highly your friend regards them. She confesses how she has “been tryna copy every word you say” and “obsessing in the worst way”. In the chorus, she begs the mystery person to tell her how to be “more like you”, which is where the title comes from. One line I really love in the chorus is “then maybe I won’t wish that I was someone else”. It’s a sentiment that resonates strongly with me, as I spent a lot of my life feeling that way, too. In the second verse, jealousy comes into play. Including this darker, envious side of insecurity, is an admirable choice in my opinion. She remembers how her friend talks about this person, how “every time she mentions your name, oh, she says it like a prayer” and how she wishes she “didn’t care” about how perfect this friend is. I appreciate this verse because it doesn’t make the other friend out to be this horrible, best friend-stealing person, it just explains how she feels. At the same time, she reveals the “uglier” side of insecurity in this verse, which is not something a lot of people like to show despite it being a common feeling to feel.

While I love the lyrics and meaning behind the song, it’s also just a fun and calming song that I’ve enjoyed having on while I work. It has this pulse to it that helps me get motivated to do homework and other projects of mine. That, combined with Orla’s smooth vocals, make “More Like You” a song that I don’t mind looping. If I’m being honest, I’ll probably keep looping it into next week, too.