Singer/songwriter Ruth B released her debut EP “The Intro” in Nov. 2015. The 20–year-old took to Vine to show her talent before being discovered and signing to Columbia Records, and it is on social media that she first impressed the internet. She posted a snippet of her song “Lost Boy,” and after earning over 80,000 likes by the end of the week, she was inspired to finish the song, which is the first song Ruth wrote. After posting the finished song on YouTube, it earned over 100,000 views overnight. Since then, “Lost Boy” has earned over nine-million views on YouTube and has entered the TOP 5 on iTunes.
“The song had a lot of potential just to be about Peter Pan, fairies, and pixie dust, but I wanted people to be able to relate to it,” Ruth said. “I think in a sense we all have our own Peter Pans… for me, music is my Peter Pan. It’s what I go to when I’m feeling lost or down, and I think people can relate to this. It could be an actual person, a hobby, sport – anything that makes you feel at home.”
Ruth B’s “Lost Boy” has a sweet and delicate, yet strong, sound that matches perfectly with her voice. It has a whimsical touch to it, evoking a childlike nostalgia in listeners, especially those who grew up having Peter Pan as a part of their childhood, showing her excellent skill as a songwriter. However, the bridge’s lyrics contrast with the matured youth of the rest of the song, and the bridge sounds overly childish, but this plays in her favor. It shows her innocence and freshness, considering she has just entered the professional music scene. It, overall, showcases her rich and deep, but gentle, singing and songwriting talent excellently, coming together in an emotionally charged and powerful way.
“Golden,” “2 Poor Kids,” and “Superficial Love” are the other three tracks from Ruth B’s “The Intro,” and were also written by her. “Golden” is an uplifting self-positive song about separating oneself from the toxic people around them, but remembering that those experiences that were suffered through helped sculpt character. “2 Poor Kids” speaks of a love between two people and how it may be simple and not rich, but is sincere, true, and untainted by money, power, or fame. “Superficial Love” reveals a want for something real in relationships and shows that relationships should be sincere, with each member putting each other first.
There is one major concern regarding Ruth B. All four tracks from her EP have a similar, near identical style. They all are slower songs and none of them display any extended power notes. While her emotional and revealing tracks open up her mind and heart to her listeners, they don’t showcase all of her capabilities, which should be the ultimate goal of most debut works. Debut albums and EPs need to showcase the multiple sides to a recording artist because listeners will typically brand an artist’s genre and style based on their debut works, but if their debut works showcase as many sides and styles that the artist can possibly show, then they can go in practically any direction with their following albums and won’t be limited to one area of music.
Ruth B didn’t show this variety, which was somewhat disappointing. However, the side of herself that she showed was an intimate and inviting one, and showed that she has immense songwriting talent and a natural voice, so she is well poised to branch out of her comfort zone and break out into the music industry with a polished full debut album that deepens this intimate relationship she has started with her listeners.
Click here to listen to “The Intro” by Ruth B, or check out her official website.
The McNicholas Milestone 