Amy Allen ('Espresso'/'Please Please Please' Co-Writer) to Release Debut Album; Shares Lead Single

Singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Amy Allen has announced her debut solo album, the self-titled Amy Allen, which will be released this August 23 on AWAL.

To mark the occasion, Allen shares the album-opener lead single “darkside” alongside its accompanying lyric video. On the track, Allen delivers an otherworldly piece of alt-pop layered with shadowy beats and spellbinding strings, presenting a poetic meditation on “learning to show your true self to someone you love, and how that can be painful and beautiful at the same time.”

One of the most vital behind-the-scenes forces in pop music today, Allen has brought her massive songwriting talents to a steady stream of smash hits in the first few months of 2024 alone, with her contributions to songs like Sabrina Carpenter’s culture-dominating “Espresso” and “Please Please Please” and more. A Billboard Hot 100 hitmaker who has worked with superstars like Olivia Rodrigo, Justin Bieber, and Leon Bridges, won an Album of the Year GRAMMY for her work on Harry Styles’ Harry’s House, and was nominated for the inaugural Songwriter of the Year award, Allen showcases a new dimension of her one-of-a-kind artistry on his record. Centered on a gorgeously composed and endlessly unpredictable form of indie-rock, with inspiration ranging from Cocteau Twins to John Prine, Amy Allen introduces an essential new artist whose music you didn’t know you already loved. 

Developed over the course of two years with collaborators including producers Ethan Gruska (Phoebe Bridgers, Ryan Beatty), John Hill (Sylvan Esso, Cage the Elephant), and Eg White (Florence + the Machine, Adele) and co-writers like Tobias Jesso Jr., Amy Allen highlights the range of one of the most prolific songwriters in pop music today. She says the record is full of “songs so personal there’s no way I could ever give them to anyone else.”

Amy Allen Tracklist

darkside

girl with a problem

pillar 

weirdo 

reason 2 forgive

the american

even forever

break 

unafraid 

kind sadness

to love me

choices 

MORE ON AMY ALLEN:

Amy Allen’s forthcoming self-titled debut album is the latest milestone in a journey that began with joining her first band at age eight and composing her first song at ten—and later included such landmark moments as studying with legendary industry veteran Kara DioGuardi as a college student. She marks the triumphant outcome of a lifetime devoted to the intricate art of songwriting. 

After spending her formative years playing in various bands (including her sister’s all-girl rock group), Allen headed to Berklee School of Music and founded a band of her own, then moved to New York City with her bandmates post-graduation. Although the band quickly drew interest from record labels, Allen made the tough decision to step back and double down on sharpening her craft. Thanks in part to a serendipitous meeting with songwriting heavyweight Scott Harris (Shawn Mendes, Justin Bieber), she soon began landing cuts with major artists like Selena Gomez and Camila Cabello. “Right away I loved working with different people and learning about different genres and song structure and voice, and then going home and using everything I learned to write a song for myself,” says Allen. Through the years, she’s brought her whip-smart lyrical skills and undeniable melodic sense to an ever-growing list of hits—including tracks from the likes of Halsey, Tate McRae, Justin Timberlake, Rosé of BLACKPINK, and many more—and earned a nomination for the inaugural Songwriter of the Year at the 2023 Grammy Awards.

Amy Allen inhabits a kaleidoscopic sound suited to a music obsessive whose inspirations range from the Cocteau Twins’ enigmatic dream-pop to John Prine’s wistful country-folk. “My main goal with my first album was to take the time to craft songs that were so honest and authentic that they’d still carry the same weight for me years from now,” says Allen. “That can be hard to do when you’re writing for other people all the time, because you don’t really have a say in what ends up getting used. This album was a way to hold onto my artistry, and put songs out into the world that I can listen back to with my kids and grandkids in 60 years or so and still feel completely connected to every word.”

Arriving soon after the mind-blowing back-to-back success of “Espresso” and Carpenter’s follow-up single “Please Please Please”—two Billboard Hot 100 top five hits co-written by Allen—her debut album ultimately fulfills a certain intention she’s long kept close to her heart. All throughout the album, Allen imbues her storytelling with an unguarded honesty that has much to do with the nature of her songwriting process. 

“What I’ve always loved most about songwriting is that it lets me take everything happening inside me and express it in a way that’s hard to actually speak out loud,” Allen says. “In so many of these songs I’m talking about things I don’t even talk about with my friends, so the idea of putting them out into the world is definitely scary. But as a songwriter, my North Star is to make other people feel seen and held, emotionally speaking. The more I can really dig into what I’m feeling, the more it’ll cut through and end up having a real impact on somebody else.”

Photo Credit: David O’Donohue

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