Whitney Tai Designs the Perfect Escape With Hypnotic Single “Slumber Party”

Releasing past trauma, grief, and taking charge of one’s mind was part of the notion behind Whitney Tai‘s moody pop-rock anthem “Slumber Party,” the second single from her forthcoming third album American Wasteland, out fall 2025.

Hypnotically swaying around an antidote for peace of mind, Tai creates a control tower for the soul, singing So what if we never leave? / The state of slumber that we / Once believed as our reality / And baby, we’ll never need / The excuses on the mantelpiece / If we just cancel our RSVP.

“You can apply that to a grander conversation, but on a personal level, it’s ‘And baby, we’ll never need the excuses on the mantelpiece if we just cancel our RSVP,’” Tai tells American Songwriter. “It’s waking up to things that are harming you, getting rid of past trauma that’s keeping you stuck, and not being a slave to information, being able to get out of your own body and say ‘I have control of the wheel, you’re not in control of me,’ whether it’s government, friends, partners, whoever it is in your life, no one has control over your mind.”

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Tai adds, “Right now, it feels like there’s a lot of mind control in general. I’ve always been interested in the theory of how enlightenment and people and society are all interwoven.”

For Tai, the lyrics, written by her with the music bed co-written with producer Tommy Hatz, are also blueprints drawn from principles in design and philosophy.

“I studied architectural design and history, and a lot of that studying is in theory and how designers and thinkers, and philosophers of the time were applying those principles to the buildings they were making, to the spaces they were creating,” says Tai, who also co-produced the track. “I find a lot of similarities in the way design applies to the way life functions, just from a theoretical approach. So I think there was a lot of this going on in this album, of digging deep into the theoretical problems that we have on a personal and a more societal level.”

A follow-up to her Apogee from 2020 and 2015 debut Metamorphosis, American Wasteland continues Tai’s “symphonic pop-rock” trail. Recorded between 2021 and 2024, American Wasteland also reflects a difficult period for Tai, following the death of her father and the end of a long-term relationship.

Tied to her previous single “Rhea,” covering loss and pain, American Wastleland presses deeper and is more personal, spanning everything Tai has endured and survived up until now, including losing her mother at 10, abuse, and a life-altering accident, along with the damage of socio-political and economic “decay” prevalent today.

“During a particularly dark time in the world, Whitney and I found each other, and together we created what I believe to be a defining body of work,” said Hatz in a statement. “That goes beyond any words that I can say.”

To celebrate the release of “Slumber Party,” Tai is hosting a single release “slumber” party on June 26 in Los Angeles. RSVP here.

Photos: Joseph Cultice