Orla Gartland Keeps It Real With New Single ‘Pretending’

Feeling the need to be someone you’re not while around others can be tiresome. But today, Orla Gartland is here to tell us to kick that fatigue-inducing activity to the curb and just be ourselves with her new single “Pretending.”

Orla Gartland was born and raised in Dublin, and started writing songs when she was 14. Since all of the local pubs wouldn’t let her perform due to her age, she decided to share her music online until she was of age. The moment Orla finished school, she headed out on her very first headlining tour. She also moved to London, and began to work with other writers.

On top of creating her own music, Orla has helped pen songs for other artists, such as XYLO, and BTS with “134340.” She has assembled her own live show with bassist Pete Daynes and Drummer Sara Leigh Shaw, and the three have tour extensively in 2019.

“Pretending” follows Orla’s latest EP Freckle Season, which was released in February. It’s also the first track from her debut album, arriving next year.

“Conversations with strangers are exhausting when everyone’s playing a part and God knows I’ve been guilty of it,” Orla says. “‘Pretending’ is a song about being done with putting on an act for other people. I worked on the song a lot over lockdown and really valued the time I had to pour into it, though it did feel odd to work on a song about being at a party when parties feel like a distant memory. I wanted the heart of the song to feel like you’ve separated yourself from the group and cut away all the chaos around you, only to be left with your own voice.“

Check out “Pretending” below, and say hi to Orla Gartland on Instagram and Twitter @orlagartland!