Lynsea Explores Personal Health Journey with New Single, ‘hormones’

One of the great challenges (and wonders) of daily life is the ability for one to find things to be captivated by no matter where one looks. 

Inspiration can come in all forms, often emerging from the least expected sources — some shocking breakthrough on a lazy afternoon, a throwaway line unconsciously overheard while walking by strangers in conversation, or hidden in what many would take to be boring instructional reading material.

That last example is what led to the latest single from local singer/songwriter Lynsea. While “hormones” might outwardly present itself as a song about the gravitational pull of attraction, there’s more to it than that. 

In fact, according to Lynsea, the idea for the song jumped straight from a medical textbook to its manifestation as the emotional alt-pop flair she dropped on Aug. 16. 

In listening to the track initially, it’s easy to simply be swayed by the lo-fi beats, wrapped together with synths and light guitar work that build during the chorus and in the final stretch of the single. 

The bigger emphasis, however, is on Lynsea’s vocals, which are never overshadowed by the instrumentals. 

Without additional context, the lyrics describe a love-at-first-sight experience, broken down into compounds, bouncing off each other in perfect harmony, especially in the opening verses.

“I was doing just fine/ And then you went and changed my mind/ Chemicals in my brain/ Making me feel this way/ Now I’m focused on you/ Like I’ve got something to prove/ I’m not normally like this/ Just come closer, can’t resist/ Can you tell me why I feel this way?”

Lynsea takes the time to gleefully teach listeners about what’s behind each excited moment she’s experiencing. Inspired by her own recent hormonal health journey, “hormones” analyzes the intricacies of human emotions by breaking down the science behind them.

In speaking with Queen City Nerve about the recent release, which she celebrated with an intimate live performance at McGill Rose Garden on Aug. 17, Lynsea shared that much of the inspiration for her lyrics starters with her love for nonfiction reading, which she then muses into her own fictional storylines. 

“I feel like [my songs] are more from that cerebral creative writing [angle],” she said. “I’m just such a student at heart that I do want my songs to have some sort of message buried in it somewhere, even if the feeling of it is lighthearted.”

For “hormones” in particular, the track was born of her experience in taking a more conscious approach to her own body’s health, which meant reading volumes on hormonal health and other related topics. 

“I started my hormone health journey in 2023 and my world was changed for the better,” the singer explained. “Hormones are not talked about enough, and truly without awareness of them, they have an inevitable effect on our decisions, relationships and quality of life.

“It should be known that hormone education is not reserved for women, nor only for sex education,” she continued. “If you are human, you are being influenced by this chemistry daily, so, if you are human, this song is for you.”

As with “hormones,” Lynsea is often particular about the subjects she explores in each one of her songs. In her 2020 debut release, “Coffee at Midnight,” she conjures relatable memories of coffeehouse dates and meet-ups, sharing that intentional space with an exclusive invitee.

“Cafes aren’t just a place we meet people we’re romantically tied to, but friends and family as well,” she told me. “I wanted [‘Coffee at Midnight’] to speak to the feelings those places invoke for us.” 

Inspired by her penchant for listening to international music to help learn different dialects, Lynsea also unveiled that she plans to translate many of her works into other languages. She started with “Loca Por Ti,” a Spanish version of 2023’s “Out Of My Mind” that she released in March of this year.  

Having recently wrapped filming on visuals for “hormones,” which will hit her YouTube page in late August/early September, she also plans to release Spanish and French versions of the single later this year.

Lynsea’s strength as a songwriter is in the way she turns the seemingly monotonous into a beautiful storyline, as she took the scientific nature of her latest track’s subject and made it an emotional exploration of how hormones affect our thought process in isolated moments. 

Read more: Charlotte Native Anna Elise LaFrance Shines Overseas

In breaking down a breakdown, the earworm of a track plays off the questions we might ask to ourselves when those feelings strike with a smooth, lighthearted background that is perfect for any lo-fi playlist. 

In Lynsea’s own words, “So what if it’s just hormones?”

Lynsea will perform at The Evening Muse on Sept. 26 with headliner Joe May, a songwriter/keyboardist/producer known for his work with Pluto Gang.