Los Angeles singer-songwriter Debbii Dawson releases Kool Aid, a new single and video from her forthcoming EP Where Have All The Good Men Gone?, out June 26 via RCA Records.
Written and produced with Justin Tranter and Tommy English, the track turns infatuation into darker theatrical pop. Whimsical chimes, sweeping strings, lively percussion, and Dawson’s commanding vocals tracing control, manipulation, and the dangerous pull of belonging.
Dawson explains:
I used to be in a cult. It sounds like a unique ordeal, but this brief time in my life taught me that the experience of being influenced and controlled to your detriment is more common than you think. You might be in a similar situation yourself right now, but blissfully unaware. My song ‘Kool Aid’ is about that feeling. ‘What do you think about control?’ — a cult leader chillingly asked me these exact words, and it’s a question I wanted to ask listeners in this song as well. We all want to believe in something or someone, to belong and experience meaningful connection. When all of these great things are promised to you, it’s very easy to get sucked into something dangerous. We live in a time where our hope is being weaponized. My hope is that this song gets listeners asking themselves questions about what and who they believe in before it’s too late.
Directed by Aaron Sinclair, the video mirrors that tension with Dawson in white at the centre of a nocturnal, ritualistic gathering.
With Happy World passing 5 million Spotify streams and tours alongside Orville Peck, Suki Waterhouse, Role Model, and The Beaches, Kool Aid sharpens Dawson’s next chapter; turning toxic belief systems into pop theatre: sweet, sharp, and uncomfortably close to real life.
