Julian Daniel Announces EP, Hidden Hills, Shares a First Look With “Distance”
Hailing from Toronto, Canada, 20-year old Canadian singer-songwriter Julian Daniel carries himself with a sense of bravado and sheer confidence as he unapologetically forges his own path. “I want to give a voice to younger generations and help them feel like they aren’t alone. I want to show that it’s cool to be different and break boundaries,” says Daniel.
Where his debut EP, E-Boy, could be characterized as fluorescent electro-pop — soon garnering the attention from the likes of The Chainsmokers. His forthcoming mixtape, Hidden Hills, is built on feverish production, glimmering guitar work, and Daniel’s sharp vocals. As the mixtape progresses, “Distance”, the first track off the mixtape, carries itself in a straightforward manner as it captures the anxieties and uncertainties of a long-term relationship at heart.
“Distance shows the decline of emotion. Feeling trapped in your brain with nowhere to go. An urge of wanting to end a relationship but not quite being able to, as you keep remembering all of its beautiful aspects. Holding on to what you should let go because it isn’t good for you anymore,” says Daniel.
Throughout the duration of the mixtape, evocative lyrics and sharp poeticsm intertwine through as Daniel details the decay of love and forlorn through the lens of Courtney Love & Kurt Cobain’s relationship. Speaking on the inspiration for the project, Daniel states, “For a while now I have been infatuated with Kurt Cobain’s story, his love life, his career and his death. In honour of this I wanted to speak light on what happened to him and his story. I had a line in my song book which read, ‘she said she wants to make a movie, not one to watch on the big screen, one to watch when she’s lonely.’”
Julian’s ambitions go far beyond music. Even as the music was garnering attention, Daniels still faced challenges. This soon inspired him to focus his efforts outside of his artist pursuits on mental health awareness, in turn transforming the takeaways around Hidden Hills to deliver Daniel’s message for those struggling. “The entire project was originally inspired by the theory of 27 club, old Hollywood, fame, love and abuse of drug use,” he says. “…as I have personally had connections with people who have attempted and know people who have lost their lives in this form. I want to be clear that if you need help, speak to someone.”
Stream Distance below.
