"WID4L", track-by-track by Ellen Benediktson
Only Lovers
Only Lovers is the EP’s focus track, a bittersweet love song with tension-driven verses exploring the darker sides of love. The song’s angelic pop chorus opens up to the idea that all the pain love brings might be worth it in the end, because “only lovers hurt like this".
I’ve romanticized falling apart for love — and have fallen apart. Only Lovers is about chasing a love that’s too intense to survive, where the pain becomes proof that it was real.”
Jealousy
Jealousy confronts the dark, turbulent emotions that churn in all of us, envy, insecurity and feeling like everyone is passing you by. Jealousy is a prison you compulsively put yourself in, and the song is a confession for those kinds of sinsSometimes it’s easy to confuse someone else’s path with your own and believe their success means you have less. Which is bullshit. I really want to genuinely celebrate other people’s success as much as I want them to celebrate mine. I get so embarrassed when I’m nagged by jealousy. It’s ugly. Something that I want the song to reflect both lyrically, visually and in the production
i’m that girl:
“i’m that girl” captures the chaos of figuring yourself out and challenging the illusion that there’s a reward for fitting into expectations, when in reality, it only leads to losing yourself. I love turning awkward moments and bad decisions into a badge of honor, embracing imperfection while pushing back on the idea that women need to be smaller, quieter, and more put together. The idea of a messy or loud girl being something negative is so boring, but still really hard to shake. It’s so deeply ingrained in us that femininity is supposed to be graceful, subtle, and fragile, when in reality, that narrative just holds us back from reaching our full potential.”
WID4L
WID4L is about acting, not thinking, I wanted the song to be sensual, ritualistic and horny. No logic here, just feeling, and oh god I hope it never ends.In the production, we experimented. I wanted to keep the pop/rock foundation from Good Girl but also try something new. When we landed in a more electro-pop landscape, it immediately felt exciting — like a natural continuation of my sound.
i tell my friends
“i tell my friends” is a grungy pop confession that lives in the space between self-control and self-sabotage. It’s a tribute to wanting what you know will ruin you. The song captures the cycle of convincing yourself you’ve learned your lesson, while already planning your next mistake. What lie are you gonna tell your friends this time? You know you’re in way too deep when you start lying to your friends. There should be an AA for being addicted to bad love.