“This year was supposed to be especially busy, and it all came crashing to a halt,” says singer-songwriter/guitarist Brooke Annibale. Aside from the pandemic and the civil unrest, Annibale’s world screeched to a standstill because she was planning a wedding… and today was supposed to be the big day.
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Since her nuptials had to be put on hold due to COVID-19 and social distance rules, Annibale decided to commemorate the day by releasing a single instead – the gorgeously pastoral “Home Again,” a love song for her girlfriend and bride-to-be.
“Over a year after I wrote [‘Home Again’], I proposed to my girlfriend (she said yes!), and we set our wedding date for June 26, 2020,” she says. “For the past several months, I have looked forward to this day, a special day of celebration, and a day that for much of my life I didn’t think would even be legally possible. Sadly, like everything in 2020, the wedding had to be postponed. But this specific day still weighs heavily in my mind, so to honor it, I decided to release this song today.”
A graceful pop ballad with a chorus that soars and flies, “Home Again” swirls into a magical elegy of tender devotion. With an airy and breezy melody that highlights her playful and charming lyrics, it’s an elegant skip that would melt any heart… marking her bride a very lucky lady. “Delicate lines / Drawn to keep it in / I might’ve felt something / Drawing me to you,” she sings over the propulsive rhythm that keeps the emotionally-potent pace.
“[“Home Again’ is] a love song to my future wife, an expression of love and gratitude for how we did indeed make a beautiful home together and we will indeed be able to get married surrounded by the people that we love,” she says.
This proclamation of love through song and ceremony is something that Annibale doesn’t take for granted. With LGBTQ marriages now legally recognized in the court of law, this commitment is everything to her and rightfully so. “I think the ceremony and the celebration are both very connected for me,” she explains. “It was really important to be able to declare that commitment in a ceremony with my family and friends as witnesses.”
While the postponement of the wedding is a momentary frustration, the fact that marriage equality is now law has her elated. “I obviously spent years thinking I might not ever be able to get married in this country and had a difficult time with the process of coming out to family and friends,” she reflects. “To finally have found my person, to be able to get married, and to be able to have my family and friends’ support all mean the world to me. So, it was super difficult to have to postpone, but at least we CAN do all those things… just not this year.”
As her plans roll ahead for her wedding, her strategy forward in an uncertain music industry is to keep on creating. “I just need to get back to focusing on writing new music,” Annibale concludes.” I’ve got a lot of pieces of songs. Eventually I’ll be able to get into a studio and record, so I want to be ready when that time comes.” With new music on the way, the premiere of “Home Again” today is one of many commitments she plans to see through.
