MIA CIECHALSKI
Life & Arts Editor
Warning: This article contains mentions of domestic violence.
Music is one of the best ways to let out emotions that are otherwise difficult to express.
To that effect, two best friends and roommates, now creative partners, released their very first single “you should leave him.,” on Valentine’s Day.
Emma Porter, a junior music industry and public relations major, and Bella Albino, a junior sound recording technology (SRT) and vocal jazz major, have been best friends and roommates since their freshman year. Recently, they became creative partners.
The two decided to make music together in August. At the time, Porter was journaling about unresolved issues from her past.
“I was just at that point when I came home from work, producing beats, singing out a bunch of nonsense. I really wanted to write this and make it into a physical thing,” said Porter.
Their song “you should leave him.,” reflects both Porter’s and Albino’s experiences with domestic violence from past relationships.
They wanted to create something that lets them take back their power and for other people who may have gone through this or who are currently going through something like this to relate to as well.
“The song … kind of just channeled [the] anger that I feel,” Porter said. “This song is from a woman’s side of a relationship where there’s emotional abuse, manipulations and physical abuse.”
Both Albino and Porter created the song because they felt that society allows men in relationships to be as angry as they want, and there’s no backlash for it.
“This song is about the events and thoughts I had during that time, the anger I had towards [my ex-boyfriend] and being able to verbalize it … and say, ‘It’s okay for me to be … angry about this,’” said Porter.
When the song was released, Emma decided to change her stage name from Otto to Porter.
“It came from my mom’s middle name and my grandmother’s maiden name. I wanted to honor the women who came before me,” said Porter.
Albino agreed to help Porter create the single not only because she understood Porter’s perspective, but also because she felt that the SRT department can sometimes get stale while she’s recording her own rendition of other people’s work.
“The objective is just to meet the deadline and get the grade,” Albino said. “So, listening to Emma’s demo, I was like, ‘Okay, finally, something I’m really excited about.’”
This was Albino’s first opportunity to use everything that she’s learned at Fredonia for a project that’s her own, not just for school.
For Albino, creating this song was a powerful and healing experience.
“I was also in unsafe situations, and when you are in something like that, you feel completely powerless,” she said.
To Albino, their song represents reclaiming the power that was taken from them.
“All of the power you took from me, I am taking it back, and I’m going to speak on this because it takes so much strength to finally say, ‘I’m done,’” said Albino.
When they first started to create the song, it was very collaborative and the song metamorphosed throughout the process.
When they were finalizing the demo and getting it into the studio, both Albino and Porter were building ideas off of each other.
“Throughout the whole process, it just kind of changed and grew and became so much bigger than I think we thought it could,” said Albino.
Porter said, “It was a strong start for a single, because I feel like right off the bat we knew exactly what needed to be said in the first song.”
Porter hopes their song will encourage other people to talk about their experiences, to feel emotions they should have towards it and encourage them to be angry at the person who created their domestic violence experience.
“The song is a reminder that it’s not your fault, and you have every right to call this person out and tell them that they’re in the wrong,” said Porter.
When Albino was in a domestic violence situation, she didn’t have anything she felt she could turn or relate to.
“I hope this is something that people [who] are recovering or out of this situation can connect with, and for the people that are currently in it, [they] can use this song to find the strength to leave,” said Albino.
Both Porter and Albino hope their song can help people feel a sense of community.
“Love is not supposed to hurt. Love is not supposed to be upsetting. Love is real and it is found all around you. It is found within yourself, in communities of people who have the same experiences as you, and it is out there. You can find the strength in yourself to leave,” said Albino.
Porter and Albino have a message for everyone out there: you are loved.