Originally appearing on “American Idol” in 2021, musician Benson Boone recently shot into the spotlight after his single “Beautiful Things” exploded in popularity on social media during the weeks leading up to its anticipated release on Jan. 18. As a result of his two previous EPs, Boone currently has over 32 million monthly listeners on Spotify, with his soulful and emotion-packed variety of singles and EPs drawing in an audience no matter what genre you enjoy.
“Beautiful Things” is an amazing song about the struggle of potentially losing someone or something you love. Boone has a very powerful and passionate voice that perfectly conveys conflicted and almost anxious feelings. Combined with the wonderful lyrics, “Beautiful Things” is a stunningly written, powerful and thought-provoking ballad that definitely holds up to its name.
His singing and songwriting talent carries over into his earlier work too. After the passing of his grandmother, Boone wrote his song “In the Stars,” a beautiful tale of grief and having to say goodbye. The song conveys the conflicted emotions that accompany grief perfectly. The slow and melodic beat paired with a story of coming to terms with losing a person close to you and finding reminders of that person in everyday life makes this song a must-listen. I love songs that discuss grief because even though it’s not aimed at the listener, they most likely have someone they can connect the song to and it can aid in processing the complicated life after loss. However, I wish the song was longer and with less repetition of the lyrics since it’s very easy for you to lose interest while listening.
Benson Boone is no stranger to pulling at the listener’s heartstrings with lyrics that hit close to home. If you have ever been through a breakup, you know the cascade of emotions that come with it. In his song “To Love Someone,” Boone captures these emotions perfectly. Throughout the song, he sings from the perspective of someone who recently left a relationship, highlighting all the hurdles one has to overcome in order to properly move on. This is my favorite song by him by far, as it perfectly portrays how it feels to miss someone and think back on all the memories you made together while doing your best to heal. It is stunningly fervent and perfect to listen to when you just want to feel something.
If you’re looking for songs that are similar to Boones’ music I would recommend “Orpheus” by Vincent Lima and “Look at The Time” by Sawyer Hill if you enjoy the emotional aspect. If you lean more towards the romantic aspect of his music I would recommend “Silver Lining” by Mt. Joy, “The Night We Met” by Lord Huron or “Hesitation” by Andrew Garden. All of these songs are very emotional and have very complex lyrics that are super fun to analyze and listen to, while simultaneously handling topics that usually are viewed as something to be shied away from such as grief, regret and hard breakups.
Overall, Benson Boone is a gifted songwriter with the ability to write lyrics and pair them with melodies that will grab at the deepest parts of your emotions. And even though I love to gatekeep music that I enjoy, I highly recommend listening to some of Boone’s music. In total, I’d give his songs 4/5 stars. Some of his songs run a little short and others feel slightly repetitive, which may be something that others appreciate but it’s not for me. Boone makes music that anyone can enjoy no matter the genre they prefer because, unlike taste in music, emotions are constant among everyone and he captures emotion perfectly within his songs.
