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Jessica Towler's "Anxiety" reveals her life-long experience with anxiety and depression to her fans through colourful melodies and haunting synths.
"I really wanted the song to be super raw and full of emotion," Towler said.
The 23-year-old singer-songwriter said one of her lyrics "My anxiety, she got the best of me" resonated with her audience.
"I refer to Anxiety as almost like a little devil on your shoulder that is always there and sometimes does take control and get the best of you," she said.
Towler wrote the song herself and collaborated with producer Tal Vaisman, who also produced her debut single "On my own" in 2019.
Born in Pickering, she started singing in 2014 while studying Broadcasting at Durham College.
This year, she is participating in Canada's largest singer-songwriter competition "Sing for the Shot: Remastered".
The competition is meant to show Canadian independent singer-songwriters what it's like to audition for a record label, according to its website.
Past contestants succeeded in reaching 800,000 streams on Spotify and performing at Boots and Hearts, NXNE and Ottawa Bluesfest. Some also opened for Jim Cuddy, Tyler Shaw, Buffy Saint-Marie, Our Lady Peace and made broadcast appearances on season 2 of CTV’s The Launch.
Towler said the competition has allowed her to collaborate with other Canadian singer-songwriters.
"I recently wrote a song with Gizelle de Guzman, a Canadian singer-songwriter that I met through the contest. I hope to have the song released in the next couple of months," she said.
The singer-songwriter said she plans on writing more vulnerable songs.
"It is not only a great way to relieve stress but it also helps the healing process," Towler added.
Stream Anxiety below: