Maya Hawke has much more going for her than Stranger Things and having famous parents. On her new single, “Missing Out,” she’s getting in tune with her unique situation as a musician, actor, and general person-in-the-spotlight.
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On “Missing Out,” Hawke employs her sweet, straightforward vocals to create a melancholy ode to missing out on normal, simpler things. I was born with my foot in the door / And my mind in the gutter / And my guts on the floor, she sings in the second verse. In the chorus she intones, I was left like coals and leaves / And I sparked up in winter’s breeze / And now I know it’s me who’s missing out.
The video supplements the lyrics by presenting Hawke’s face superimposed in various scenes. It’s as if they’re showing her what she’s missing out on. Directed by Alex Ross Perry (who has done music videos for Soccer Mommy, Ghost, and Pavement among others), the video is a trippy take on subliminal messages. Only here Hawke is strapped down and forced to watch fictional lives and moments that have passed her by.
I’ve bitten off way more than I can spit out, Hawke sings in the bridge, a clever take on the cliché phrase but one that hits home. “Missing Out” is about taking on too many things at the sacrifice of other opportunities. Additionally, it’s missing moments of normalcy, or the mundane. It starts out with an example of fictional missed opportunities but quickly takes an introspective turn which holds all the power for this song.
Maya Hawke Debuts New Single from Forthcoming Album ‘Chaos Angel’
“Missing Out” is the first single from Maya Hawke’s new album Chaos Angel, due out on March 31. This will be Hawke’s third album, following her sophomore offering Moss from 2022.
According to a press release, “Missing Out” was inspired by a year Hawke spent living near and partying with her college student brother and his friends. Hawke didn’t personally experience college life in her early 20s. Now 25, she wrote the narrative “Missing Out” to reflect her feelings at literally missing out on those opportunities.
Of the song, Hawke explained, “There was actually a girl who went to Brown, where my brother goes to college, and we were all going around saying what our wish was for ourselves. She said, I want to write the next great American novel. It was the moment where I felt older than everyone because I laughed so hard. I was like, ‘You are so far down the wrong track!'”
She continued, “Wish to write a novel. That would be a miracle. Don’t wish to write the next great American novel, that’s a nightmare! It made me feel I actually am a different place in my life than these people I was around. It totally inspired this whole song.”
Chaos Angel is Maya Hawke fully realizing who she is as a musician. She utilizes her conversational and honest songwriting to showcase who she’s grown into. The album can be pre-saved here.
Featured Image by Trevor Tweeten
