Burgeoning singer/songwriter Benjamin Steer unpacks love, loneliness, and the chaos of your 20s in his debut EP ‘Figuring It Out,’ released hot on the heels of sold-out shows, viral success, and a career-defining risk.

Stream: ‘Figuring It Out’ – Benjamin Steer

Benjamin Steer is no stranger to uncertainty, having made an entire EP about it.

On his debut EP Figuring It Out, the fast-rising British-American singer/songwriter captures the emotional rollercoaster of your early 20s with raw vulnerability, restraint, and a sincerity that’s become his calling card. Released August 15 via Artist Theory, the five-track project marks the official arrival of an artist who seems to have struck a chord with a generation trying to make sense of love, purpose, and the mess in between.

Figuring It Out - Benjamin Steer — Figuring It Out – Benjamin Steer

“The EP is a hopeless romantic’s dream and downfall,” Steer says. “I wanted to capture the helpless unknowns of being in your 20s, and hopefully create something people can relate to.”

So far, people are more than relating; they’re showing up. Figuring It Out lands off the back of Steer’s sold-out debut London headline show at The Grace, a series of major support slots with UK hitmaker Myles Smith and viral singer Arthur Hill, and a growing fanbase that now includes nearly one million monthly Spotify listeners and over 14 million global streams. On social media, his music continues to make waves, racking up over six million views on user-generated content and more than 3.8 million views across his own platforms.

Originally from Washington D.C. and later relocated to Scotland for university, Steer’s journey into music wasn’t exactly planned. A former economics student at St. Andrews, he began writing songs during long, isolating winters, processing everything from existential angst to romantic infatuation. One of those early tracks, “Muted Colors,” caught the attention of label execs and quickly led to a record deal just days before he was due to start a fancy corporate job in New York. Steer chose music. And that leap of faith is now beginning to bear fruit.

Steer’s charm lies in both his humility and his emotional transparency.

Onstage, he’s quietly magnetic. In conversation, disarmingly sincere. And in his music, he doesn’t pretend to have the answers.

“I’m still figuring it out,” he admits. “But I think I’ve learned that finding something you love — and someone or something to love outside of your work — is the greatest key to happiness.”

Across the EP, Steer paints his world in muted colors and unfiltered truths: From the starry-eyed yearning of “Oh Darling” to the aching clarity of “No One Wants to Die Alone.” His songs might be soft-spoken, but they speak loudly to anyone who’s ever felt stuck between who they are and who they’re becoming.

Atwood Magazine caught up with the ever-charming Steer to talk emotional cycles, sold-out milestones, and the delicate dance of risk and reward.

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:: stream/purchase Figuring It Out here ::

:: connect with Benjamin Steer here ::

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A CONVERSATION WITH BENJAMIN STEER

Atwood Magazine: You’ve called Figuring It Out “a hopeless romantic’s dream and downfall.” How did writing these songs help you make sense of your own experiences of love and uncertainty?

Benjamin Steer: I think love of any kind comes hand in hand with a feeling of purpose. And when you are trying to figure things out in your twenties you fall in and out of love with many people and things, and you go through this emotional rollercoaster of feeling like you have everything one second and then the next…you are not quite sure what you are doing. It is an uncertain time for everyone and that’s sort of what I find the easiest to write about… because even now I have no idea what I am doing!

The EP feels like it moves through stages of youth: infatuation, ache, clarity. Did you set out to build that arc, or did it emerge naturally as the songs came together?

Benjamin Steer: My whole life is cycles of this, so it was not a hard thing to come naturally. I like to feel things… in their highs and lows and in between. One thing that a friend once said to me that really stuck with me – it was right after I went through a really strange situationship, and I was incredibly down bad… felt hard to pick myself up. I was talking to them about how difficult and low I was feeling… And they looked at me and said “good.” If I feel love or emotions deeply it only makes the existence of being a human more saturated, more meaningful – perhaps in the good and the bad.

“No One Wants To Die Alone” resonates with so many people. What truths about loneliness and connection were you trying to capture in that song?

Benjamin Steer: I always describe this song when I play it live as “Just what it says on the tin” I think at times I can be a straight-to-the-point-writer, and this is a prime example of that. I don’t want to die alone… which sounds quite heavy but what I think I have found in the last few years is that I crave companionship and a greater purpose in things outside of the obsession in my professional life.

Life can be quite lonely in your early 20s and finding someone that you can share your highs lows and in-betweens with is probably one of the most valuable things I have found and makes you a better person. I think particularly in the music industry your personal and professional kind of blend together and so more so than ever I desire someone or something to care about and love outside of the work. I want to sell out the 02 but I also want a farmhouse with my wife and kids and a few dogs.

You began writing during the long winters at St. Andrews. How did isolation, and that particular environment, shape the way you approach songwriting even now?

Benjamin Steer: My time at university was certainly not one that I desire to return to in many ways. It was an extremely competitive environment and there were little to no outlets. It was very isolating, and I felt, even though I was surrounded by great friends… it was lonely. I often think that if my time at university was amazing, I would have never picked up a guitar and I would have never started songwriting.

The first song that I ever released was a commentary on the numbness and isolation I felt during my time there but sort of disguised in the feeling that you always had wear a facade like life was great and that you had everything figured out… when in reality I had no idea what I really wanted to do and what made me excited and happy.

You were standing on the brink of an economics career before a record deal shifted your path. What did choosing music over that future teach you about risk, purpose, and trust in yourself?

Benjamin Steer: I think it was a big risk, but it was one that I never really thought twice about. I always wanted to feel like I was in control of my future and that my success would be as a result of the work that I had done purely off my own back.

I think I have always tried to embody a bit of an entrepreneurial spirt and I think the music industry is kind of the perfect place to make that happen. You can wake up one morning and write a song or post a video that can actually completely change your life trajectory. You are not working with commodities that are owned by anyone else, you are the commodity, and the attention is the demand. It’s a fascinating dynamic and the fact that your inherent creativity in songwriting which was already something I did as a hobby and passion – is going to be the reason behind your success it makes it all the more exciting.

“Muted Colors” became your breakthrough. When you listen to it now, does it feel like a reminder of who you were then, or does it reveal new meaning as your career evolves?

Benjamin Steer: I think “Muted Colors” was the unexpectedly perfect first song to put out. It served its perfect purpose in the time that it was written for me personally but also to show an audience the type of music and messaging I wanted to pursue.

I look back positively on it now for sure, but I don’t hold much emotional attachment to my music once it is released. It was the first steppingstone in a long row to cross the river, and I’m so grateful that I could have even had the chance to start or embark on that journey.

I think it worked because it was just honest, it was one of the first songs I had ever written, and I did not really have a reference point as to what was ok and what was not. I think I do naturally cringe a little bit listening back to it now because I think my style and tone has changed a bit, but it certainly was a fantastic first step!

Your sold-out show at The Grace was a milestone moment. Beyond the excitement, did it change the way you see yourself as an artist?

Benjamin Steer: Oh absolutely! I think it was one of my greatest accomplishments in my career but also personally so far… It is very hard to tangibly quantify your success in music and to have people standing in front of me, singing songs that I have written in my bedroom is one of the most bizarre but amazing experiences in my life so far.

I think I always struggle a bit with imposter syndrome – I am literally just a guy who writes songs about what he sees in the world. It is not particularly groundbreaking stuff, but the fact that people connect to it at the same level I do is unbelievable. I feel unworthy.

You’ve shared stages with artists like Myles Smith and soon Arthur Hill. How do those experiences influence the way you think about your own live presence and storytelling?

Benjamin Steer: Oh absolutely, they are incredible people to be around. Very talented but very driven. They want to the best and they are the best, and their medium is their music and personal experiences. It is amazing to watch and shapes how I view myself in the industry – creatively but also in a business and a success context.

Your listeners often describe your music as quietly cinematic. Do you see yourself painting scenes with sound, or are you more concerned with emotional truth over imagery?

Benjamin Steer: I don’t really tend to overly analyze my sound or messaging. Ultimately, I want people to connect to it and it can be lyrical or just a feeling. The song is a winner if it takes its own shape and form out of my control – to be interpreted and shared by the listener in their own personal context.

The EP is called Figuring It Out. After writing and releasing it, what do you feel you’ve figured out, and what questions are you still trying to figure out?

Benjamin Steer: Well not much I would say… I very much am still figuring it out. All I have figured out is that finding something you love and something purposeful in life is the greatest key to happiness. I’m still searching, but I think that I am.

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