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Can you remember the bubbling nervousness of the first time you were asked to share something that you created? A lot of the times this anxiety starts when we’re young. We’re forced to share a drawing we created with the class or a short writing assignment with your teacher. We learn from a young age that we not only have the ability to share our intimate thoughts and feelings through what we create, but we learn that other people’s reactions to our creations matter to us.  

If someone dismisses something we’ve made, we immediately seek fault in our own abilities, because creation is intimate. On the contrary, when something that we created garners recognition and appraisal, it tends to make us further explore this creative outlook.

Losing yourself in experiences, however, can lead to a lost sense of self in your own creation. Nigerian-Candian artist ODIE speaks on behalf of his own brush with this circumstance in his latest single, “Slowly.” The cinematic track comes almost two years after his critically-acclaimed, standalone project, Analogue.

Emotional violins accompany a rattling production style, giving the single an air of self-seeking intimacy. Sticking to his introspective and true-to-self complexion, “Slowly” characterizes an internal war he was forced to enlist in. Just days before the song dropped, ODIE took to Instagram to share his mindstate during this time,

Last year I found myself caught in an internal war. For the longest time, I did not realize that I fell out of love with myself & my art. To remedy I found myself lost in experiences. When I started working again it was for the wrong reasons. The material although good didn't sound like me. But how could it if I didn't even know my self for sure. Fast forward a few months, I'm back to being me & doing what I do best. Working on finishing up the next project as we speak but meanwhile dropping something new later this week to hold you over. Thank you for sticking with me.

ODIE was met with bolstering appreciation for his vulnerability, a wave of excitement for the new song, and a plethora of empathetic responses from kindred spirits who understand the phenomenon of losing themselves in experiences.  

“Slowly” serves as a gentle reminder both to ODIE and listeners alike that losing yourself is only a part of the process of creation. Finding yourself happens as long as you allow yourself to "Free your mind and come home.“

Listen to "Slowly" below: