Jess Cornelius Leans Into Change on “People Move On,” New Album “CARE/TAKING” out June 14

Los Angeles-based artist Jess Cornelius has revealed the first single from her forthcoming sophomore album CARE/TAKING with the release of “People Move On.” In addition to the new song, she has also announced plans for a North American headlining tour that will kick off with an album release show at Scribble in Los Angeles on June 14th. As the follow-up to her 2020 debut LP Distance, her next chapter finds her grappling with sundering change and an intractable fear of loss.

“People Move On” serves as the record’s thematic linchpin — reckoning with rousing but poignant intensity with the inevitable mutability of life and relationships forged and faded. Against the gentle rollick of guitars, Cornelius outlines all the ways life has routed her expectations, confronting the physical and emotional toll that has slowly piled up against her. “I gave away / Pieces of my body / And my brain,” she sings with glowing melancholy. “I’ll get it back someday.”

The track touches on both the raising of her child and the dissolution of the companionship she once had with the father of that child. “But I know / That if I could do it all again / I’d do it just the same,” she resolutely coos, gripping tightly to her lucid acceptance of life’s relentless ebb and flow. “And people move on / People move on.”

Punctuated by the flash of piano keys and a blaring alto-sax the song ends with a stirring message of personal perseverance directed at her daughter. One that centers on affirming to her that — despite the receding of love between her parents — she remains the radiant center of their universe and will never feel that love wane.

The new single also comes with a music video directed by Cornelius herself, with cinematography by Lauren Wade. The scene opens with Cornelius and her band performing in striking monochromatic. Dressed in all-white, the trio delivers the track’s jittery and uplifting melodics atop a checkered stage, injecting an oddball glam-rock fabulousness to its already alluring dimensions.

“Caretaking and caregiving mean the same thing but taking and giving are opposites,” Cornelius said of the album’s title. “I wanted to focus on the taking as much as the caring: What is the constant caretaking in my life and how have we failed in the caretaking of the earth and ourselves?”

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Words: Steven Ward

CARE/TAKING is out on June 14th via Tender Loving Empire Records. See Jess Cornelius live at Scribble in Los Angeles on Friday, June 14th for her album release party.

Visit Jess Cornelius on her website and Instagram to stay updated on new releases and tour announcements.

Watch the music video for “People Move On” the new single from Jess Cornelius below!

Jess Cornelius Tour
Fri. June 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ Scribble
Sat. July 20- Portland OR @ Showdown
Thu. Aug 8 – New York, NY @ TV Eye
Fri. Aug 9 – Northampton, MA @ Iron Horse Music Hall
Sat. Aug 10 – Philadelphia, PA @ MilkBoy Philly
Sun. Aug 11 – Baltimore, MD @ OttoBar
Mon. Aug 12 – Hamden, CT @ Space Ballroom

Jess Cornelius
CARE/TAKING
June 14, 2024
Tender Loving Empire Records

1. Tui Is A Bird (The Work)
2. Back To The Mainland
3. People Move On
4. Desire
5. The Surgeon
6. Dying
7. Cloud Postcard
8. To The Desert
9. Laps In The Drugstore
10. When I Was Alive