Rachel Grae is here with her emotional pop ballad, “The Best”! The track, which is a heartfelt anecdote that feels fresh off her diary page, was written after her head finally cleared after a break and she realized her self-worth. At the beginning of the track, she struggles to move on from a past relationship, being pulled backwards by the haunting memories. Rachel confesses she’s given her heart away to her former partner, but she “never knew one-sided love was somethin’ people went through.” She wants to wish her ex the best, “but [they] already had it.” Rachel wants their next relationship to be a healthy and loving one, but she knows they won’t have the best. Rachel reflects once more, recognizing the lack of similarities between her relationship and the ones in the movies: she’s “never [seen] a movie where the guy guys out at night/comes back in the morning, actin’ like [they’d] be alright.” She regrets being in this relationship, realizing how much of a waste of time it was loving someone who didn’t give the same love back. And in the last moments of the song, she tells her ex “but you had to let it go/you had it.”
“The Best” is a classic, down to Earth, pop ballad. With just a backdrop of a grand piano, Rachel’s vocals stand out as raw, authentic, and imperfectly perfectly. Yet, the piano line perfectly accompanies her voice. There’s a slow build into the second chorus, where she adds a small chamber orchestra, whose melodies soar. The angelic background vocals and harmonies add to the uplifting spirit that lingers throughout the song, despite reassuring the sadder themes. Finally, the climax arrives at the bridge, with peak production and some smooth and effortless vocal runs on Rachel’s part. Before the last repeat of the chorus, the production takes a step back, where this intimate moment is shared between Rachel and the listener. This power ballad is an addictive listen, and it was stuck in my head immediately after the first listen.
Rachel Grae is a singer and songwriter born and raised in New Jersey, but is currently based in New York. She’s known from a very young age that she wanted to pursue music while simultaneously helping people through her music. Despite only breaking into the music scene in 2021 with her single, “Bad Timing,” she already gained over 1.4 million listeners on Spotify alone. She has been consistently releasing music since then, constantly delivering on her music style that she describes as “a shared journal with listeners”. Rachel has received critical acclaim from publications such as MTV and Rolling Stones, and her most successful track, “Outsider”, has amassed over 38 million streams on Spotify. She’s recently been putting on live shows, and sold out her first headlining show in NYC. Although she hasn’t revealed her next moves yet, be sure to be on the lookout for her new music in the future.
Written By Lauren DiGiovanni
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