Tag: Kristen Ford

NEW YORK, August 25, 2025 (Newswire.com)
–
Acclaimed alt-folk-pop singer-songwriter Rachael Sage and her stellar longtime band The Sequins have released a thoughtful new single and video, “The Best Version”, ahead of their highly anticipated full-length studio album Canopy (a debut full-band release for Rachael Sage & The Sequins via MPress Records). An expansive, uplifting chamber-pop anthem which is magnified by orchestral strings and sparkling piano, “The Best Version” supports lyrics grappling with social media surreality, and the cathartic liberation of true human connection. Performed by Grammy® winning cellist Dave Eggar (Paul Simon) and violinist Kelly Halloran (Goo Goo Dolls), and produced with Sage and Grammy® Nominee Mikhail Pivovarov, “The Best Version” is sure to lead listeners on self-reflecting journeys of their own.

Rachael discusses the song, saying: “The best version of ourselves we present to the world through our phones and our search for peer validation may end up not being reflective at all of our core artistry or who we strive to be as human beings, when no one is watching. When humans are in the same room they tend to be more apt to look for the best in each other, nuances and all; while people in an entirely digital, virtual space may be more apt to generate conflict, judgement or rejection. The “I love you / even if I’ve never met you before” could be about a doppelgänger in a distant place – with the knowledge that we are all human regardless of the surface things that divide us – or just a prayer/energetic release into the global community of humans yearning to be be loved, seen, understood.”

Watch/Listen to “The Best Version” HERE
Stream/download “The Best Version” HERE
Pre-Order Canopy HERE

The official video for “The Best Version” explores the light and shade of social media through abstract, cyclical visuals, highlighting the internet’s ability to connect us to each other instantly – but likewise, to trigger low self-esteem and alienation. Violinist Kelly Halloran (Lainey Wilson) and harmonica player Will Wilde (Walter Trout) comprise a chamber-pop power trio that feels simultaneously connected as one organism while starkly separate. Musically whimsical but emotionally vulnerable, the cinematic clip was directed by Lee Malone and shot in London, which Sage fondly describes as her “home away from home”.

Rachael Sage & The Sequins‘ new album Canopy is a diverse collection of songs that feel like a refuge, woven from resilience, longing, and the irrepressible determination to find light in the darkest places. Following on the heels of Sage’s two latest recordings – her 2023-2024 critically acclaimed pairing, The Other Side and Another Side – this debut full-band release as Rachael Sage & The Sequins spotlights Sage’s longtime group, and continues her ongoing journey of storytelling, reinvention, and emotional connection. Confidently spanning the genres of Americana, pop and neo-folk, Sage and her band offer listeners a beautifully crafted, deeply heartfelt collection of songs that find common ground in themes of living a purposeful and joyful life rooted in inclusiveness, equality and non-violence. Reflective, mournful but optimistic, Canopy is one of her most soulful and thought-provoking works yet.

Accompanied by The Sequins – violinist Kelly Halloran, drummer Andy Mac (Pete Muller and the Kindred Souls), Trina Hamlin (Susan Werner) on harmonica, and cellist Ward Williams (Sara Bareilles) – Sage has made a name for herself as a gifted storyteller, consummate multi-instrumentalist, and prolific songwriter. A self-described cancer-thriver who is currently in remission from endometrial cancer, Sage is fueled by an irrepressible determination to find light in the darkest places – an unwavering calling which catapulted her 2020 single “Blue Sky Days” into Billboard’s Top 40 Indicator Chart. Canopy will be released digitally worldwide on October 24. A special limited-edition 40-panel hardcover book CD package – featuring Sage’s original artwork – as well as an orange colored vinyl edition, is available for preorder now via MPress Records.

ABOUT RACHAEL SAGE:
Since founding her own label MPress Records, NYC-based folk-pop artist Rachael Sage has steadily released a slew of vibrant, dynamic albums. She has toured with an eclectic list of artists including Rufus Wainwright, Ani DiFranco, Beth Hart, Howard Jones, and Grammy® winners Shawn Colvin and Judy Collins – with whom she also recorded a critically-acclaimed duet of Neil Young’s “Helpless.” In addition to being a six-time Independent Music Award-winning musician and producer, Sage is also a John Lennon Contest Grand Prize winner who has performed at the Edinburgh Fringe, SXSW, and toured globally from Japan to Berlin. Sage is also a visual artist and former ballet dancer who performed with the New York City Ballet. A self-described “cancer thriver,” she is a philanthropic advocate who has raised money for a wide range of causes, including Foundation For Women’s Cancer, WHY Hunger, American Refugee Committee/Alight, and National Network For Youth (NN4Y).

Currently on the North American leg of her summer Joy = Resistance Tour with singer-songwriter/multi-instrumentalist and Righteous Babe Records artist Kristen Ford, Sage has been bringing her incomparable live show and the inclusive musical message of her upcoming album Canopy to major cities including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Pittsburgh, Nashville, Portland, and Seattle.

Tour Dates
(please see rachaelsage.com for all ongoing US and UK tour dates)