Single reviewsThe Other Side Reviews

Anna Mae Kelly – White Lies (2021)

A lot of people are in relationships that are bad for them but can’t stop thinking about what could be if everything was fixed. These feelings have been captured by Anna Mae Kelly in her single ‘White Lies’. The song looks at wishing you had never met someone who is bad for you while also getting lost in what could have been if the broken relationship had been fixed.

Drawing on her own feelings of heartbreak, the single is one that many can relate to. With a songwriting ability she has been honing since age 13, she wraps you in the emotions she felt. With a soulfulness that is raw and all-encompassing, she touches you on a personal level.



‘White Lies’ uses a progressive opening that pulls you into the soundscape with a gentle swell. There is a misty feeling to the melody that is clouded and soft. This moves into a depth of sound as the chorus hits with a sweep of strings that lift you higher. There is a moment of bursting tones that breaks through the cloud cover of the melody enhancing the moment of clarity in the lyrics. The layers of the melody are soulful and decadent as they lap over each other and fill you with the wonderful emotive power of the music.

When Kelly’s vocals enter there is a stunning delicacy to them as she fills you with the emotions of lyrics. There is a tender whispered feeling to her performance as she acknowledges the bad in the relationship. She sends shivers cascading down your arms as she details all the terrible things that she was told before her voice joins the melody to burst out of the darkness. She is able to bring the contrasting feelings of needing to be free and still wanting to be with a toxic person to captivating life.

Anna Mae Kelly inundates you with emotion as she contrasts needing to leave a relationship with wanting to stay in ‘White Lies’. With a stunning and powerful melody, she draws you into the misty flows of the single only to burst through with a flash of strings. Her vocals are enhanced by the movement of the melody while sending shivers running down your body.

Find out more about Anna Mae Kelly on her website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Spotify.

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