Artist: Lula Wiles
Hometown: Boston, MA
Song: "Don't Ask Why"
Album: Lula Wiles
Release Date: May 27
In Their Words: "'Don't Ask Why' is an exploration of human strife, loss, and death and the helplessness one can feel in the face of it. The story comes from a time when my younger brother's life hung in the balance. I vividly remember the little field of wildflowers I was standing in when I got the call from my dad, telling me my brother had suffered a traumatic brain injury. I lost my breath and, in that moment, I felt powerless.
As my brother recovered over the next many months, I wrote this song in an attempt to voice the vulnerability I felt during that experience. I've always been fascinated by the old folk songs with lyrics about unspeakable sorrow such as burying a child or murdering a lover, all sung with a plainspoken sense of honesty. The juxtaposition of major chords and heartache feels really powerful to me. With this song, I tried to approach the lyrics in the same way … combining folk idioms and real emotion with an emphasis on simplicity and earnestness as a songwriter." — Ellie Buckland
Photo credit: Louise Bichan
