We got to know Ula Blue back in January when she released her debut single, “Carry On”.
She is back with her heart-wrenching sophomore effort, “Hang Up the Phone”. This is definitely not what I was expecting. This release finds Ula Blue showcasing her versatility early in her career.
The haunting piano in the background of the intro draws y0u in. Blue’s vocals don’t falter, despite the heavy subject matter.
At around the 1:00 mark the minimal percussion enters and fills out this beautiful ballad.
The song does have an air of sadness to it, but she did a very good job of still making it interesting and compelling.
She opened up about the loss and grief that inspired this track:
“I started this song on a flight from someplace I can’t remember to Ottawa, Ontario. I had just gotten off of the phone with my dad for the last time. He was unable to talk or move after complications with stage 4 stomach cancer, so my mom put the phone to his ear. In that moment, any words I could say felt meaningless and all I could tell him was to ‘hold on and be strong’ like so many times he had told me.
As I sat crying with my face pointed out of the window so as not to disturb the stone clad businessman sitting next to me, I pulled out my keyboard and looking out at the land and sea disappearing into transient shades of pink, purple, and blue, I recorded the piano part that you hear as the intro to this song.
It would take me over another year to finish it as I have poured so much of my grief into its expression. Now that it’s done, my grief will shapeshift and mold itself into my next project. I don’t want to rely on songwriting to allow me to feel, but I have come to recognize that it is a gift and not a burden. It is a way to show the beauty in the most heartbreaking moments of life. It is my form of acceptance.” -Ula Blue
“Hang Up the Phone” credits:
Produced and Mixed by Carter Vail of Nashville’s Happy Camper Studios
Mastered by Mostafa Zaghloul
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