May Rio Shares New Single 'Need You Like'

May Rio is New York City Music's secret ingredient. This is her first release after a year of features ("Girls" by The Dare, "Blake 2" by Blaketheman1000, and more) and an aggressive touring schedule with multiple ensembles backing her in a wide variety of venues.

Today, May shares her new single and video for "Need You Like." The single shows a boldness, bravado, and sense of humor that is at once arrestingly novel and immediately catchy. May Rio is about to emerge as NY Music's it-girl, endorsements are already in-hand. The video is co-directed by Arjun Ram Srivatsa & Lena Greene.

May says, "Need You Like" could have been a very different song. At first, the lyrics were reversed: "I went to bat for you..." but then my friend Blake Ortiz-Goldberg suggested I switch it up, write myself in as the villain. I've always loved when old country songs do that, so I gave it a shot. It's really fun playing the villain, turns out."

May practiced and now she is perfect. The project of the pop writer/performer born May Sembera has been steadily evolving since the uncertain days of 2020. Confined to her home studio in New York, she used Ableton to compose off-kilter pop songs about early '20s hedonism and days spent toiling on tour with her former band, Poppies. These songs became her debut record, Easy Bammer.

Easy Bammer was released in June 2021, right as New York's nightlife began to rouse from its pandemic slumber. Ready to meet the moment, May threw herself into a trial-by-fire gig grind, playing upwards of three shows a week for months on end. During this self-prescribed performance bootcamp, she befriended a group of like-minded emerging artists that she considers a creative cornerstone.

"I really enjoy being a solo artist but sometimes it can be difficult to do something so vulnerable on my own," she says. "Being surrounded by a group of supportive peers makes me feel like 'Okay, I'm not by myself.'"

Directors quote: "We're both animators, so we wanted to make something that could bottle the magic of animation in a live action video in the spirit of classic fantasy films like Pete's Dragon. We're also in love with New York. Sometimes it can feel harsh and, like, TOO REAL, but every once in a while you catch a glimpse of magic here. It's a mythical place, and we wanted to add to its mythos. There are goblins all around the city, sometimes you can find them in the mirror!!!"

Watch the new music video here: