Livingston has released his anthemic and powerful new single “Religion” today via Elektra Records. Reflecting on how we use social media to mask our insecurity (“I made you my religion / but that wasn’t enough”), the track arrives alongside an official lyric video which can be heard now below.
Livingston expanded on the song, saying, “Religion is a song about addiction to validation and social media. It’s interesting because on first listen it reads like a relationship song where I’m accepting I’m caught up in someone who’s bad for me, but it has this double meaning where I’m calling out myself for caring about things that I know are destructive. I went from being an unpopular and isolated kid my whole life to having my dreams handed to me, attention, going viral, money, you name it – and I quickly used all of those things as a crutch to cover my insecurity. This song attacks that in kind of an aggressive and smooth way. But I know a lot of people have felt this, so I hope they read into it.”
Growing up in Denton, Texas, Livingston was faced with bullying, anxiety, and relentless self-doubt. Throughout his childhood, he struggled to fit in and faced a constant battle to find his place in the world – finally finding the connection and understanding he sought when he poured his feelings of loneliness, isolation and inadequacy into song. Drawing inspiration for his “orchestral cinematic pop” from a wide range of artists in pop, hip hop and film scores, Livingston combines instantly memorable melodies with sweeping orchestral compositions and is first and foremost driven by honest storytelling.