TW: mentions of rape, recovery, reporting to the police, and dead end investigations but nothing explicit or graphic.

Luce, one of my very best friends and one of my very favourite people in the world, has just put out her new song and if you’ve ever believed anything I’ve ever said, believe me now when I tell you that you should listen to it. I first heard this song about six years ago and I have been waiting for this moment ever since, waiting for the day that the world gets to hear the first song of this incredible new project that Luce has been working on for so long. But the wait has been worth it because it’s everything I imagined it could be and more. Bearing witness to this creative journey has been a unique, surreal, and deeply special experience and I’m so excited for so many new people to find Luce’s music, for so many new people to make it part of their story in every possible way.

‘Haunted‘ is the first single from Luce’s upcoming album, Conversations With Myself, where she documents and writes her way through her recovery from rape. The song begins softly and with heartbreaking vulnerability as she details the aftermath of reporting her rapist to the police, her word against his, and the devastation of how that should be enough and yet somehow isn’t. Musically and lyrically, the song rises and falls but it never wavers from its core message: “I hope this haunts him.” Not her. Not you. It doesn’t rush and it doesn’t judge; it is a steady sentinel as you make your way into unknown territory. My life experiences are very different to Luce’s, and very different to the one described in the song, but listening to it has still made me cry multiple times and it gives me shivers every time I listen to it, even after all this time. At the end of the day, it isn’t the details that matter: it is the shared lived experience of women, of femme presenting people, that Luce is lending her voice to and doing so with so much care and love.

Luce has also partnered with Rape Crisis England & Wales in the release of ‘Haunted’ and her album to raise awareness, to increase understanding, to platform the voices of those who have experienced sexual violence, and to signpost her listeners to resources and support if they should need it. Here is the statement they’ve made about the partnership: “Rape Crisis England & Wales is a charity working to end sexual violence. Part of that work includes tackling attitudes about sexual violence and abuse, and also believing survivors and helping them get their voices heard. We are very excited to partner with Luce, and are in awe of how she has channelled her experiences into her music. At the time of writing this, we are finalising a written story piece that will feature on our website and be distributed to our wider audience via our newsletter (with 15k+ subscribers) and social media. We believe sharing real stories is a key part of raising awareness of the impact of sexual violence, but also to highlight the recovery and healing that can come after. To further support Luce in her mission to raise awareness, we’re happy for her to use the statistics quoted on our website, and signpost survivors to our national 24/7 Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Line.”

(The single artwork for ‘Haunted,’ photographed by Aniella Weinberger and edited by Luce.)

Luce’s voice is an instrument in the truest sense – her vocals are truly gorgeous and so evocative – and her lyrics are all the more impactful in their simplicity: sometimes extensive description is the best way to explore a story because the depth of the emotion is found in the layers but sometimes that very description can be the thing that obscures it. ‘Haunted’ is a beautiful example of how stripping a story back to the bones can reveal not only the depth of the emotion but also the weight of it. Sometimes the thing – the moment, the feeling, the the core truth – needs to be said, without being dressed up or transformed by a metaphor; sometimes saying the words in their most raw, most honest form is the most powerful way of of taking back some of the power and of conveying that experience – and the emotions of it – to another person. There’s nowhere to hide from the story, not for the storyteller and not for the listener, and that can have an incredible impact. I’ve seen it happen myself, both with ‘Haunted’ and with my own song, ‘Invisible,’ which I wrote about my experience with the mental health services (you can listen to that here, if you’d like – trigger warnings for the mention of self harm and for themes of medical trauma).

As I said, I first fell in love with this song several years ago and I don’t think it would be all that surprising if the excitement had worn off a little over that time: a lot of life has happened in the last few years! But I’m genuinely even more excited about this music now than I was then. It’s a stunning, stunning album and I can’t wait to watch it ripple out into the world and find the people who need it as they need it. Loving this song – and this whole album – has been a truly unique experience and very strange secret to keep: it’s felt like an exquisite treasure that’s my responsibility to protect, alongside those who have also gotten early insight into this project, which is such a huge honour but the anticipation has also been relentless – I’ve been waiting for this for so long! There’s something intrinsically weird about being a songwriter and getting to hear all of these gems of songs that you fall in love with and then have no idea whether you’ll ever hear them again; and on the off chance that you do get that opportunity, sometimes you’re waiting years for something that probably everyone you know doesn’t even know exists. It’s a very unique experience of excitement, I think. I wouldn’t change it for the world though: getting to be even the tiniest part of this journey has been such a highlight, both personally and creatively, and I feel like I’ve learned so much and I’m constantly inspired by Luce’s artistry, compassion, and insights.

I know I’ve linked to Luce’s music and pages a few times throughout this post but for the sake of clarity, you can find Luce’s music here and her website here, where you can read more about the story of this album. This has already been such a special journey to follow and I know it will only continue to be full of moving and inspiring moments.