Romy Rallies And Uplifts With New Single "Enjoy Your Life"

Romy is back with another dancehall hit with the release of her latest single “Enjoy Your Life,” a life-affirming anthem from The xx singer/songwriter and guitarist that is hard to shake. She will also be performing at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival this weekend on Apr. 16 and next weekend on Apr. 23. This is the second track that she’s shared in the last year and follows the release of the dizzying electronica banger “Strong” (feat. Fred again..). Romy’s explorations outside The xx are a reminder of just how much the U.K. trio is a miraculous fusion of talent. Produced by collaborator Fred again.. and bandmate Jamie xx her latest single continues to leverage her innately uplifting vocals alongside choice samples that make the track all the more infectious.

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But the story of how the song was borne into existence is no less compelling — and rather unsurprisingly inspired by a night out in Stockholm with dance-pop icon Robyn. It turned out to be a fateful night of live music during which Romy was enraptured by the otherworldly music of Beverly Glenn-Copeland. In particular his ethereal composition “La Vita” with its joyfully comforting words of wisdom and soul-piercing chants. One lyric, in particular, stood out to Romy: “My mother says to me ‘enjoy your life.'” A line that struck her profoundly because her own mother had passed away when she was just 11 years old.

The effect was rapturous and inspiring, leading Romy to seek out Copeland’s permission to sample the song. Reworking it into a pulsating dance track that wields all the potent transcendence of the original but gilded in shimmering electronica. As Copeland’s voice glimmers effervescently in the background, Romy’s arises in echo and reply. But it’s not the only sample coursing through “Enjoy Your Life,” as Jamie xx made his mark on the track by bringing in the funky rhythms of Nigerian singer Oby Onyioha’s “Enjoy your life” from her seminal I Want To Feel Your Love EP. Lending its soaring instrumentals and streaking synths a spiraling rhythm of unstoppably revitalizing energy.

“Enjoy Your Life” also comes with a music video directed by Romy’s wife Vic Lentaigne, which brings together poignantly candid shots of Romy and home videos of her mother. Bridging the gulf between the two with the footage is a means of showing how the artist has tried to honor her mother’s memory by trying to abide by the song’s words. From intimate moments like flipping through scrapbooks and reveling with friends to much larger stages like the ones that Romy occupies when bringing that selfsame joy to other people. The video imagines all the ecstatic ways that she’s sought to enjoy her life and highlights her desire to create what she calls “emotional music to dance to.”

“Those few words felt like the most simple and disarming sentence,” Romy said of the song’s inspiration. “Ever since I was 11, I’ve been aware of and drawn to the phrase, life is short. I’ve felt inspired by people who I’ve seen react to this by trying to see the positives in life, even when things are going wrong and times are hard. As much as I’d love to naturally be one of those people, I’m not always able to do this myself and often get in my own head and my own way, so sometimes a reminder goes a long way. Glenn’s lyrics were a direct connection to what had been a very quiet private thought.”

See Romy at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in Indio, CA this month on Apr. 16 and 23.

Visit Romy on their website, Twitter, and Instagram to stay updated on new releases and tour announcements.

Romy tour
16 April Coachella, Indio CA, USA
23 April Coachella, Indio CA, USA
30 April Faliro Sports Pavilion, Athens, Greece
17 May Queer Festival, Heidelberg, Germany
25 May Radio 1 Big Weekend, Dundee, UK
28 May Love Saves The Day, Bristol, UK
04 June Forbidden Fruit, Dublin, Ireland
16 June Off Sonar, Barcelona, Spain
30 June Down The Rabbit Hole, Gelderland, Holland
13 July Dour Festival, Dour, Belgium
21 July Electric Castle, Cluj, Romania
23 July Les Nuits Secretes, Mauberges, France
29 July Fuji Rock, Japan
08 August Circoloco, Ibiza
25 August Rock En Seine, Paris, France
28 August All Points East, London, UK