Watch Teddy Swims' 'Break Up in Reverse' Video
(Warner) Teddy Swims releases his most vulnerable single yet, "Break Up in Reverse." Out now via Warner Records, the track is a deeply loving breakup song rooted not in regret or resentment, but a wish to relive the relationship all over again in a way that leads to a happy ending.
The new song arrives as Swims plays a series of overseas festivals shortly after he wrapped a stateside summer run that culminated in a triumphant return to BottleRock and Bonnaroo. He was also the only artist to play both Stagecoach and Coachella this year, and made news for bringing David Lee Roth, Joe Jonas, and Vanessa Carlton onstage at the latter. In September, he launches THE UGLY TOUR, a massive North American arena tour.
"Break Up in Reverse" is intimate from the start: just Swims' voice over sweetly intimate acoustic strum as he paints a heartbreaking scene: "Tears on your face climb back into your eyes / A little less on your nerves and a little more on your mind." Reuniting Swims with collaborators Julian Bunetta, John Ryan, Matt Zara, Mikky Ekko, and Tommy King, the cut builds to a warm swell of instrumentation and a poignant hook: "I wish we could break up in reverse / Every night would get better, instead of getting worse / I'd watch you slowly lip back into my hands / Say goodbye to me in the beginning, and love me in the end."
Swims spoke on the personal meaning of his new song: "'Break Up in Reverse' really hits home for me right now and where I am in my life. Upon writing this song and my next album, I've been going through it with my relationship with my baby's mother coming to an end. With 'Break Up in Reverse' we were super inspired by an old Nas song called 'Rewind.' We loved how the whole song takes place in reverse. So we thought, how beautiful would it be if we took the same idea but wrote it about my relationship, with the punchline being 'say goodbye to me in the beginning and love me in the end.' I hope you feel as moved as I do every time I hear and sing this song!"
The "Break Up in Reverse" video brings the concept to life, opening on Swims standing in front of a pile of rubble. As he sings, a bulldozer moving in reverse reassembles the mess into a cozy room full of meaningful objects: photos, baby toys, puzzle pieces, and kintsugi pottery - broken ceramics whose cracks have been repaired with gold. In time, Swims finds peace.
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