Runnan’s buoyant, bittersweet song “LONELY LONELY” and self-titled debut EP explore the push and pull between finding comfort in solitude and longing to have someone by your side.

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Stream: “LONELY LONELY” – Runnan

Originally from China and now based in New York, singer, songwriter, and producer Runnan makes music that brings together R&B, pop and electronic influences.

His song “LONELY LONELY,” taken from his self-titled debut EP, runnan, is catchy from the opening few seconds, with a groove that gets your head nodding almost immediately.

There’s a sadness to the lyrics, but the music feels upbeat and full of life, capturing the excitement of spending time with someone you’ve been wanting to see. “I just need you with me,” he repeats, making his need for company loud and clear.

If you wanna fly away
Take me with you
Where the stars are aligned
That’s when our worlds collide
That’s when I hear your voice calling me
Keep on calling me to you
No gravity can control
While we dancing to this beat
You say you never wanna leave

Just groove with me
Feel my energy
Can you hear me saying
Want you to call me, if you’re

In the chorus, we hear the artist chanting “Oh just call me / Whenever you’re lonely.” In our day and age, most of us are glued to our phones, constantly listening to something or someone. So the desire that Runnan has for someone to pick up the phone whenever they’re feeling lonely is totally relatable. It’s evident that Runnan wants to be there for someone, and he needs their company just as much.

Sonically, the beat keeps the song buoyant, even when the lyrics feel melancholy. Written in the city that never sleeps, the track also emits the atmosphere of New York after dark, and you can begin to imagine the anticipation of a night out, the streets still busy and the possibility of meeting someone. It further emphasizes the song’s combination of excitement and longing.

Your love is so sweet
Your kiss, like candy
Feel like I’m dreaming, baby
Feel like I’m dreaming baby
Come on be my sanctuary
Let me fill your soul with bliss
Let me run your nights and dreams
While we wilding to the beat

I want you to call me if you’re
Lonely lonely lonely lonely
Whenever you’re lonely
Lonely lonely lonely lonely
Oh just call me
Whenever you’re lonely

“LONELY LONELY” is track four on Runnan’s seven-track EP. Opening track “AIR” explores the opposite feelings of being alone. Runnan enjoys having time to himself, but simultaneously struggles with memories he wants to forget and hold on to at the same time. Then there is the closing track “SHINE A LIGHT” which touches on the comfort another person can provide. The artist finds reassurance in having someone beside him, even if he can’t be certain of what the future holds. A rollercoaster of emotions, Runnan sums up what it’s like to be a human being trying to navigate life.

The EP’s thematic consistency can also be heard in its sound. Each track feels distinctly part of the same record, but with enough variation to keep it engaging. Having written, produced, performed and arranged the entirety of the project, Runnan had the freedom to follow his own decisions from start to finish and the result is something that feels undeniably his own. With an introduction to music at just four years old, where he began piano lessons, through to his studies at New York’s New School of Jazz, you can hear the experience, maturity and deep musical understanding in the EP.

For a debut, runnan succeeds in giving listeners a true sense of who he is as a musician. So with Runnan asking for a bit of company, will you be happy to oblige and listen to “LONELY LONELY”?

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Stream: “LONELY LONELY” – Runnan

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