Singer-songwriter and guitarist Geneviève Racette introduces her brand-new single/music video, “Hostage,” a track lifted from her forthcoming album, Satellite, slated to drop March 18.
Talking about the song, Geneviève shares, “‘Hostage’ is a song about feeling trapped inside your anxieties. It’s about self-sabotage. It’s when everything is fine, but you constantly worry anyway. Because something is bound to go wrong, right? It’s being stuck in an endless stream of negativity. Losing yourself in a deep loop of worry. Anxiety is a powerful thing. It’s paralyzing. I wrote this song during a trip to Toronto with my friend Barbra Lica. Anxiety has always been a big part of my life. I was very nervous and shy as a child. I hated school and I didn’t have many friends. I basically hung out with my family all the time. Dealing with stress and anxiety isn’t something new for me but if I’m not careful, things can get out of hand. I’ve had severe insomnia and some panic attacks in the past. I also, unfortunately, deal with chronic migraines and anxiety is a big trigger.”
She goes on to add, “When I wrote ‘Hostage,’ I was in the middle of what is called in astrology my ‘Saturn Return.’ This is supposedly when the planet Saturn returns to the same ecliptic longitude that it occupied at the moment of your birth. They say it takes about 28-30 years. It’s a period of intense growth, discomfort, and maturity. It’s there to teach you responsibility for yourself. It makes you question everything and forces you to make important life decisions. I don’t know if you believe in that stuff, but it was SPOT ON for me. I was about to completely change my life (personal and professional) and it was super scary. I was about to take the leap and dive in.”
Geneviève grew up in the suburbs of Montreal surrounded by music. Her mother taught piano, her sister played piano and sang, and her brother played guitar and trumpet. Later, Geneviève studied vocal jazz and songwriting, followed by releasing her debut EP in 2014. Two years later, she released her debut album, Northern Lights.
Her last album, the bilingual No Water, No Flowers, was released in 2019 and received vast praise as well as features in elite outlets, along with appearing on numerous Spotify, Amazon Music, and Apple Music Playlists. She’s toured throughout Canada and shared the stage with artists such as Francois Lachance and Valerie Carpentier.
“Hostage” opens on a low-slung guitar topped by Geneviève’s velvety, delicious voice, rife with nuanced tones of aching coloration. Accompanied by only her sensitive guitar, the song is akin to an exquisite acapella performance, as she narrates her emotional anguish.
“I look at the moon and I wonder how many more I’ll get to see / I look at my friends and I worry there’s some place else they’d rather be / I stay up at night counting the hours until sunrise / Just thinking about all of the ways that I / I keep myself down / Hold myself hostage.”
Alluringly beautiful and poignant, “Hostage” flows on soft, gentle harmonics crowned by the evocative voice of Geneviève Racette.
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