Bre Kennedy has reached the time in her young adult life where she has undergone intense personal change and unique transitions. Often referred as the phenomenon of Saturn’s Return, the artist has recognized this transformative period and turned it into profound inspiration for her sophomore album, Scream Over Everything. The album was written “over the course of one metamorphic year” as Kennedy shares her experience with change and growth. Throughout the nine songs, the singer recounts stories of “reconnecting with estranged family members, seeking therapy, and growing into and out of relationships.” As she takes the listener through her personal life, she inspires hope in the audience as they prepare for their own Saturn’s Return.
TRACKLIST
1. Retrospect
2. Navigating
3. Meantime
4. Keep Going Back
5. Ahead of Myself
6. The Vase
7. Faultline
8. Scream Over Everything
9. Hello
Bre Kennedy is a singer-songwriter that utilizes her creative storytelling to convey authentic human emotions through unforgettable pop records. Her music takes strong influence from timeless artists such as Brandi Carlile, Fleetwood Mac, and Bonnie Raitt. Kennedy comes from a musical household, growing up listening to classics such as Tom Petty, Heart, Aretha Franklin, and Carole King. She learned to play the guitar at 12 years old and began performing locally in her hometown of Los Angeles. The singer eventually left her native land behind and moved to Nashville to pursue her music career. In 2019, she made her debut with her self-released EP, Jealous of Birds, and quickly followed up with her sophomore EP, Twenty Something, in 2020. Then in 2021, she released her debut full-length album, Note to Self. This led to her being signed to Nettwerk Music Group the following year. This fall she embarked on her first headlining tour, the Scream Over Everything Tour, which wrapped up in October. She also held two album release shows, one in Nashville and one in Los Angeles, to celebrate with her fans. As of now, she has no pending shows but keep up on her socials for any future announcements!
Retrospect
Kennedy kicks off her album with the soothing, yet melancholic track “Retrospect.” The song shares her experience in letting go of the past and moving on to bigger and better things. She admits that she has spent too much time worrying about what might have been and what could have been done differently. Paired with a soft acoustic guitar, bouncy percussion, and mesmerizing vocals, Kennedy guides the listener through her newfound thinking. She admits that she has been a “fool for holding on” because the past is already gone. She cannot get it back and it is damaging to continue to live like that. Instead, she understands that she needs to let go of her past and focus on her future. With “Retrospect”, Kennedy sets the nostalgic and transformative tone of the entire album.
Navigating
“Navigating” is a profound track that stems from a very special and delicate moment. Kennedy wrote the track after a conversation with her younger brother when he was going through a difficult time. The coming-of-age track is meant to resonate with listeners that are going through similar experiences. The track is about learning to navigate life’s hard decisions and understanding that you are not alone. No one knows what they are doing, and it is okay to feel lost sometimes. Life is full of winding turns and dead ends, but everything will work out eventually. In the post-chorus, Kennedy celebrates this part of life with the lyrics: “So, we drive, so we drive// I roll the windows down and yell// ‘We’re alive, we’re alive!” With these lines, she emphasizes that this experience is what makes us human, and we should embrace this feeling. Although this track was written for her younger brother, it serves as a reassurance for every single listener and inspires them to pick themselves up and dust themselves off after a difficult period.
Meantime
Maintaining the inspiring and uplifting theme, “Meanwhile” is a deep track about love and hardships. Through the delicate lyrics, Kennedy reassures her loved one that no matter what, she will always love them. She wants them to understand that sometimes she may need to distance herself to let her go through her own hardships. In the chorus, she sings: “Me loving me, means loving you.” With this, she emphasizes that taking time for herself and letting her undergo change and pain, is what she needs to be there for her loved one. She cannot be there for someone else if she herself is falling apart. Despite all this, she implores her loved one to be patient and know that through all of this, she still loves them. It is a sweet sentiment to recognize the moments that you cannot be fully present for someone, but still being there to ensure they know your true feelings, making “Meantime” another impeccable track by Kennedy.
Keep Going Back
“Keep Going Back” is a nostalgic track about reminiscing on a past relationship. One that you want to let go of but somehow your mind keeps pulling you back. Kennedy’s angelic vocals and iconic soft-pop production lulls the listener into this wistful storyline. Her heart-wrenching lyrics share her experience with wanting to move on, but life around her won’t let her. Simple, everyday moments remind her of her lost love, and she is immediately “flooded by a flashback." Whether it is an article of clothing, a song on the radio, or an old photograph, Kennedy keeps going back to the past. Her mind cannot help but remain stuck in the past while the world around her keeps spinning. Despite the desolate storyline, “Keep Going Back” contains an infectious soundscape that the listener cannot help but want to scream along to. Being able to evoke raw, heartfelt emotions in the audience while keeping them energized is a meticulous talent that Kennedy has effortlessly perfected.
Ahead of Myself
Once again, Kennedy beautifully articulates honest relatability and authentic emotions through her insightful lyricism. “Ahead of Myself” explores her experience in wanting to know just where life is going to take her. She is getting antsy as she anticipates what is going to happen and is “getting ahead of herself.” She always wishes she could skip to the end so she knows just the right things to do. She is anxious by this great change in herself. Because, the truth is, we never know what may happen and where this life is going to take us. Her words reassure listeners that even when they feel lost in this world and are unsure what the future holds, they are not alone, and everything will work out in the end.
The Vase
“The Vase” completely changes the vibe of the album by stripping down to a piano-led ballad that tugs on the listener’s heartstrings. The hauntingly beautiful song shares Kennedy’s experience with trying to fit the mold of society. In an attempt to fit in, she removed herself from the “garden” of never-ending growth and beauty and diminished herself to fit into “the vase.” Now, that she is older and understands who she is, she wishes she had never shrunk herself to fit others’ standards for her. In the chorus, she begs to be “put back in the wild” where she was “perfect all along.” She wants to regain her innocence from before, when she did not feel that she needed to change. Now that she has gained wisdom from her adult years, she wants to take back her wish and become the free soul she was always destined to be. “The Vase” is an inspiration to every listener, as it reminds us that we are perfect the way we are, and we never need to change just to fit the societal mold.
Faultline
“The Faultline” continues the melancholic atmosphere with the soft acoustic guitar-led ballad. Kennedy’s raspy yet smooth vocals contain a strong passion that showcases her authentic emotion. She is hopelessly in love with the subject, to the point of breaking her into a million pieces. In pursuit of this feeling, she has bent over backwards in an attempt to reach the “goldmine.” However, these actions are not reciprocated. Instead, while she bleeds herself dry for her muse, she still has to plead to them: “do you trust me yet?” She immediately grabs the listener’s attention with the poetic lyrics in the first verse: “I used to hold myself hostage// Yeah, I used to hate myself for being honest// Maybe I'm a masochist// Takin' the blame for all of half of this.” Her heart wrenching words reveal that she recognizes these feelings are not good for her, and yet, she still cannot let them go. “The Faultline” is another gut-wrenching track that showcases Kennedy’s melodic songwriting.
Scream Over Everything
Kennedy’s decision to name the album “Scream Over Everything” was a clever choice that demonstrates her creative and meticulous mind. The title track describes her frustration and exhaustion with life, and in the end, she just wants to scream and yell in an attempt to drown out all the noise. As a young adult trying to navigate in the modern world, I too feel this need to release all my anger and irritation. With an album that covers all the ups and downs of being an adult, naming the project after this experience was a brilliant choice. It fully encapsulates how it feels to be in this world and experience this never-ending rollercoaster of emotions. In the chorus, Kennedy sings: “I might scream over everything// Let out the version of me that I’ve been trying to keep down.” She confesses that after years of holding it all in, she has reached the breaking point. Now, she is ready to put all her emotions, the good and the bad, on display for the world to see. This song is a testament to her personal strength and her relatable soul.
Hello
Kennedy ends her incredible album with a bang as “Hello” energetically wraps up each theme and message of the project. The upbeat track showcases the singer’s final decision to let go of the negativity and surrendering to the unknown. The singer admits that she “tends to grieve goodbyes before they even happen.” For her entire life, she has come to expect sadness and tried to run from these goodbyes. But now she has reached a point in her life where, after years of pain and heartache, she has grown into the person she is today—a confident young woman who has accepted the unpredictability of life. Now, she is saying “hello” to the future. In the bridge, friend and colleague, Jacob Wesley Rodgers, is brought in the provide an inspiring spoken word. At the end of the bridge, he says: “If there’s a voice, let it sing// Let it scream over everything.” This reference to the album’s title ties the entire album together and once again showcases the project’s cohesive storyline and Kennedy’s unparalleled brilliance.
Scream Over Everything is an ingeniously crafted album that perfectly encapsulates all the feelings that come with being a young adult trying to navigate this difficult world. From the uncertainty of relationships to the elation of finding yourself, Kennedy highlights each experience effortlessly. While maintaining the integrity of her personal experiences, she also ensures that each song conveys a level of relatability for her fans. Furthermore, her compelling vocals mesmerize the audience with her soft, yet raspy voice, bringing chills to the listener. Through every track, Scream Over Everything highlights Kennedy’s unmistakable talent, showing that she is born for absolute superstardom.
Written By Karlee Skipper
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