Indie artist Rachel Louise dives into a tender and hard-hitting coming-of-age story with her new single ‘Meet Me at the Beach’. Inspired by the pop culture phenomenon, ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ series on Prime Video, the track comes a week after the final season of the show - which just so happened to drop on Rachel’s birthday.
‘Meet Me at the Beach’ invites listeners deeper into the world of the show and Rachel ultimately hopes the track will be heard by show creator Jenny Han, embarking on a social media journey to make it happen. ‘I’m struck by the way art often inspires art and I would love Jenny to hear how her storytelling has drawn a story out of me’.
Produced by Ben Malone (Luca George, MACEY, BEXY) and mastered by Chris Chetland, the track’s cinematic soundscape centres around the sonic world of the show. Soft, nostalgic piano, floating guitar, and background ocean textures give way to a driving beat, dramatic impacts and epic pop synths and strings. A dreamy blend reminiscent of early Bon Iver and Taylor Swift’s 1989 era, ‘Meet Me at the Beach’ is likely to resonate with fans of both.
Rachel describes starting the song after watching the first season of ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’, ‘I was so compelled by the coming-of-age story of the main character Isabel (Belly) Conklin, the intergenerational relationships explored, and the way the beach house seems to become a character of its own’. As Belly spends much of the show choosing between two potential love interests, ‘Meet Me at the Beach’ imagines her discovering the fullness of who she is, able to love out of a place of overflow rather than deficit.
‘It’s wild how storytelling offers moments of such profound connection and discovery. Writing ‘Meet Me at the Beach’ has allowed me to name some of my own journey and I’m excited to see that flow beyond me as it’s heard by others.’