Maya Donovan paints an energetic, yet ominous portrait of her lifelong battle with anxiety in her new single The Company — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
Exploring a more acoustic environment than her previous releases, Donovan invites her listeners to bear witness to an internal dialogue that is both deeply personal and strikingly familiar to anyone who has struggled to quiet a racing, worried mind. The release of The Company completes her three-track EP Birthday Girl. “Each song on this EP captures a really unique moment of the last few years of my life and I’m excited to finally be able to put them in a little package and share them with the world,” she reveals.
Through frank lyrics, The Company lays bare the constant turmoil of being caught in a state of limbo, unsure if the symptoms she experiences are a result of her thoughts or a genuine illness. The song title cleverly invokes a double meaning, citing the unexpected sense of companionship Donovan finds in her anxiety, while also suggesting something more insidious. Donovan explains, “anxiety sometimes feels like it’s being orchestrated by this sinister network that I’m always trying to outsmart, a ‘company’ if you will, with a conspiracy to overthrow me from my own body.”
Despite its serious subject matter, the track has a playful spirit, as Donovan’s buttery vocals glide across faithful strums of acoustic guitar and rolling chords on a warm acoustic piano. It features glittery, bell-like flourishes that feel almost childlike, eliciting the sense that this dialogue is one that goes back decades, or perhaps underscoring Donovan’s feeling that she is being toyed with by the likes of fun-house mirrors. The Company was written by Donovan, produced by Gabriel Leeman and mastered by Kurt Dimmick. The track was recorded at Virtue & Vice Studios by Anthony Gallo.
Donovan’s artistic journey began at a young age, expressing her emotions through little tunes. Learning piano at seven, she mastered bringing her melodies to life. Drawing from her innermost thoughts, she creates heartfelt songs, chronicling her struggles with mental health and self-discovery. Influenced and inspired by Carole King, Billy Joel, Lady Gaga, Fiona Apple, Sara Bareilles, Madison Cunningham and Julia Jacklin, she forges a unique path in music.
Listen to The Company above, check out the Birthday Girl EP below, and keep Maya Donovan company at her website, Twitter, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram.
