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Jun 27, 2024 By Caleb Campbell

Indie singer/songwriter Courtney Farren has spent the year steadily sharing new singles ahead of the release of her debut album, Punchlines. Last year, she shared her latest EP, Rabbit King, and followed with a handful of new tracks, including the recent releases “I’m Not Alone (I’m Lonely),” “Last Seen in New York,” and “Fear.”

Farren explains of the album, “The title Punchlines came from a friend of mine pointing out that I live for ‘punchlines and props.’ In other words, I love telling jokes and getting credit when they’re funny, which is true. It sounds less romantic when I put it like that, plus I’m always funny, but Punchlines felt right when it came to naming this body of work. All stemming from my personal experiences in one way or another, these songs are the punchlines to my perception of the world and my feelings. I try my best to take everything with a grain of salt and humor is a great tool even with difficult emotions and circumstances.

Having made the bulk of this project in my home studio, Punchlines is a true reflection of the past few years of my life. I’ve been wearing a lot of hats for this project; production, writing, photography, design, directing, video editing, campaigning - but I feel like that’s the landscape of the industry right now for smaller artists. If you want to do something and don’t have a budget, you’ll figure out how to do it on your own or with your friends. I’m lucky that my partner, who I enlisted for countless jobs to help me (thank you, Garrett!), and my friends are extremely talented and I really trust their opinions. It’s fun to be pushed into places of discovery and learn the depths of your creativity.”

The full album is out tomorrow, and ahead of the release Farren is sharing an early listen to one of the record’s highlights, “Will I Ever Love Me,” premiering with Under the Radar.

“Will I Ever Love Me” finds Farren immersed in soft-hued synths, hushed backing vocals, and understated percussion. The instrumentation rarely rises above a gentle murmur, casting a glassy, crystalline sheen across the track. Farren settles into the track’s entrancing sonics, with her lyrics tracing stark and confessional musings on self-love and her relationship to her body: “I can hear my bones talk / I can’t lift my arms up / I wish I didn’t like it / I wish I didn’t know this part of me…Will I ever love me?”

Farren says of the track, “‘Will I Ever Love Me’ is the oldest song on the record. For me, the song is about my relationship with food and control, but in releasing the song it will take on new meanings. Will I Ever Love Me? Will you? It’s a constant choice and I learn more about self-love every day.

I wrote and produced the song to a certain point, then sent it to [producer Ross MacDonald] while we were working together remotely during the lockdown. Ross is incredibly talented, and collaborating with him helped keep me sane in a very uncertain time in my life and in the world. I’m grateful to be sharing such a vulnerable side of myself and hope I can connect with people who have felt similarly in their lives.”

Check out the song below. Punchlines is out everywhere on June 28th.