The UK soul singer, Beth Macari, is set to release her first single of 2021, “Gotta Get Back”, on April 13th.
The songwriter’s latest track takes a deep dive into 90’s soul and R&B, featuring Macari’s soulful vocals and a relatable story about ‘losing yourself’ in a bad relationship.
“My song writing is usually very honest and based on what I have experienced, but I wanted to try and write a song with a fictional story behind it,” Macari said.
“I started rolling with the idea of a bad relationship coming to an end and realising how much of yourself you’d lost, but as the song developed, I realised I was also writing it because of how I was feeling during lockdown. I felt like I was losing myself a little, with not being able to gig or even rehearse with my band. I guess the song has two meanings behind it.”
“Gotta Get Back” is the first of many songs that Beth penned during lockdown and sees her working solely ‘in-house’ with her long-time band member and collaborator Phil The Beat. The duo worked on music from home and meeting at their studio in Newcastle Upon Tyne when lockdown restrictions allowed.
Despite the challenges of the pandemic, spending the past year in lockdown hasn’t seen things slow down for Macari.
The Newcastle-based soul artist managed to finish up her latest EP “I Am Everything” just before the pandemic hit at the start of 2020 and she released the first single “I Promise (That I Got You)” last April.
Macari added: “I Promise” was picked up by US soul radio stations and quickly entered the Official Soul Chart, breaking into the Top 20 after Beth was featured as ‘Artist of the Week’. The song then went on to win the ‘Presidents Choice Award’, as voted by thousands of listeners worldwide.
“It felt surreal to have my music reach people in the US, let alone win an award for it. I’m so grateful to everyone who made it happen.”
Three more singles followed in 2020, including the empowering soulful ballad “I Am”. Accompanied by a star-studded music video which also featured some of Beth’s fans submitting videos from home, the track was used in a campaign by mental health charity ‘If U Care Share’, raising money and awareness for the cause.
Macari continued: “It’s been both scary and exciting, I feel like I’ve always thought I’m not good enough to create something in full and be proud of it without us having to get other people to tweak it and make it better, so it was rewarding to prove myself wrong. I loved really taking my time with it and working with my best friend.”
Although live music ground to a halt for most of 2020, Beth did manage to perform twice at the UK’s first socially distanced venue, the Virgin Money Unity Arena, supporting Fleetwood Mac tribute “Rumours” and Les Misérables star Alfie Boe.
With live music set to make a return in 2021, Beth is looking forward to getting back on stage, with dates already re-scheduled from 2020 including support slots with Alexandra Burke on her UK tour and opening for Will Young at South Tyneside’s summer music festival.
“Gotta Get Back” is out on all major digital music stores/ streaming platforms on 13th April 2021.
