Soda Blonde’s Faye O’Rourke and Adam O’Regan discuss the band’s searing Valentine’s single “People Pleaser,” a soaring, emotionally charged anthem reckoning with love, validation, and the cycles of self-destruction we struggle to break.
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Stream: “People Pleaser” – Soda Blonde
‘People Pleaser’ is an anthem for people who love too easily, lose themselves too often, and mistake validation for love. It’s about the cycle of seeking connection at any cost – even when it hurts.
There’s a raw, aching truth embedded in “People Pleaser,” the latest single from Dublin’s Soda Blonde.
Released on Valentine’s Day, the song turns notions of love and longing inside out, exposing the fragile, compulsive need for connection that so often masquerades as romance. Fueled by soaring vocals, radiant melodies, and a wall-of-sound production, “People Pleaser” is both confession and confrontation – a track that doesn’t just acknowledge self-destructive tendencies, but wrestles with them in real time. With frontwoman Faye O’Rourke delivering some of her most unguarded lyrics yet, and bassist Adam O’Regan making his debut as a lead vocalist, the song feels like a turning point, not just for the band, but for anyone who’s ever lost themselves in pursuit of someone else.
It isn’t really ok
Don’t you know your words they get me
Violent and stuff and I’m pushing
It’s rough and I beg
You know that I need to stay out late
Talking it out with my friends
Who allow me to say
You know a few things
Have happened to me
When I was younger
But you never thought to wonder
Too many for me to number
As Soda Blonde’s first song of the year – following last year’s acclaimed singles “Bully” and “The Saddest Thing” (which featured in our 106th Editor’s Picks) – “People Pleaser” sets the stage for what promises to be a bold new chapter in the indie pop group’s journey. Self-produced by the band, the track is steeped in emotional intensity, pairing urgent percussion with sweeping synths and a restless, pulsing bass line. At its core, it’s an anthem for those who love too easily and lose themselves too often – a song that doesn’t shy away from the damage done, but instead meets it with unflinching self-awareness. The decision to release it on Valentine’s Day feels deliberate: A subversive counterpoint to the holiday’s usual narratives, one that acknowledges love’s messier, more complicated side.
“Valentine’s Day brings up a lot of different emotions for people – it’s not all romance and flowers,” O’Rourke tells Atwood Magazine.
“There’s longing, heartbreak, self-reflection. ‘People Pleaser’ is about love, but it’s also about self-worth, and I think that makes it a fitting counterpoint to the usual Valentine’s sentiment. It’s a bit of a phony day anyway, so it was cool to find a way to bring some meaning into it – for us.”
Founded in 2019 out of the ashes of indie folk band Little Green Cars, Soda Blonde have quickly become a personal favorite and a regular on Atwood Magazine‘s pages thanks to their stunningly seductive blend of sound, style, and substance. Comprised of Faye O’Rourke (vocals), Adam O’Regan (bass, production, vocals), Donagh Seaver-O’Leary (drums), and Dylan Lynch (guitar), the Dublin-based quartet wasted no time in carving out their own identity, debuting with the Terrible Hands and Isolation • Content EPs before releasing their critically acclaimed first album, Small Talk, in 2021. Their sophomore record, Dream Big, followed in 2023, solidifying their reputation as one of Ireland’s most exciting and sonically ambitious bands. Effortlessly blending shimmering synth-pop, brooding indie rock, and a fearless approach to storytelling, Soda Blonde craft music that is as thought-provoking as it is intoxicating – an ethos that shines through in “People Pleaser.”
Soda Blonde rise to a fever pitch as they hit the song’s chorus, a moment of unfiltered catharsis where desperation meets defiance.
The band channel their signature charisma and raw energy into a refrain that feels as euphoric as it is devastating. O’Rourke’s voice cuts through the sonic swell with piercing urgency, each line a confession wrapped in anthemic grandeur: “‘Cause I people please, it’s a kind of disease, I told you that I’m really not alright,” she sings hot on the mic, every line emphasized for the emotion it entails. Her words feel almost breathless, unraveling in real-time as pulsing drums and cascading synths push the track toward its breaking point. The line “I’m going to love whoever’s right in front of me” lands with a tragic weight – at once a reckless surrender and a plea for something real. As the final, echoing question lingers – “Is it really that bad?” – Soda Blonde leave the answer hanging in the air, forcing us to sit with the uncertainty, the ache, and the undeniable pull of the cycle they so vividly bring to life.
Am I really gonna take another ride with him
Or with her or with them ‘til I’m gone
‘Cause I people please
It’s a kind of disease
I told you that I’m really not alright
Break it down
I’m not sticking around
I’m going to love whoever’s
right in front of me
Is it really that bad?
Is it really that bad?
Of special note is the track’s introduction of Adam O’Regan as co-lead vocalist; already a harmonizing presence on many a Soda Blonde track, he steps into spotlight in a new way on “People Pleaser,” singing the second verse in its entirety and bringing a new depth, and warmth, to the band’s already stunning artistry.
“It’s definitely a new dynamic for us,” O’Regan says with a smile. “We didn’t originally set out to make it a duet, but as the song developed, it became clear that having two voices – two perspectives – added something really powerful. Thematically, the song is about losing yourself in other people, so splitting the vocal makes it feel even more like a conversation or a shared experience. It also introduces a subtle shift in tone – almost like two sides of the same struggle.”
I never really spoken
Out about what gets me down
I’m telling you what I think that it is
That you want me to say
The song is about losing yourself in other people, so splitting the vocal makes it feel even more like a conversation or a shared experience.
As “People Pleaser” plunges into its breakdown, Soda Blonde strip away the shimmering production, leaving Faye O’Rourke’s voice front and center – raw, close, and unguarded, as if she’s singing straight into our ears, a confession whispered in the dark. The instrumentation dims, making space for an unflinching moment of self-reflection: “Here I am at 32, thought I’d be saying something new, but I’m not growing, I’m not growing.” There’s no metaphor to soften the blow, no poetic distance – just the stark, aching realization of stagnation, of repeating the same patterns long after you thought you’d outgrown them. It’s the kind of honesty that stings, the kind that turns memory into something tangible, like a weight pressing down.
And yet, even in its vulnerability, the moment is electrifying. There’s something powerful in naming the wound, in facing it head-on, and in that quiet, intimate space, O’Rourke doesn’t just bare her soul; she dares us to do the same.
By the garage near your house
We went out to get some smokes
I didn’t let anyone know
Where I was going
Then that other time in town
We sat around the studio
And I said I think you’re a little old for me
Didn’t you know
Then you asked me what I wanted
I just wanted to be wanted
Wanted to be grown up
Here I am at 32
Thought I’d be saying something new
But I’m not growing
I’m not growing
I’m not growing ’cause of you
Is it really that bad?
At its heart, “People Pleaser” is a song about self-awareness – a realization laid bare in its most vulnerable moments.
O’Rourke has called it “an anthem for people who love too easily, lose themselves too often, and mistake validation for love,” and it resonates as exactly that: A confessional unraveling, filled with the weight of hard-earned recognition.
Yet, as much as the song dwells in the ache of self-destruction, it also finds power in naming the pattern. As O’Rourke reflects, “People Pleaser” doesn’t offer easy resolutions, but it does provide catharsis. “The biggest takeaway is the power of self-awareness,” she says. “I hope listeners hear themselves in it, whether that’s as a rallying cry or a moment of recognition.”
O’Regan echoes the sentiment, emphasizing the song’s ability to connect on a deeply human level. “It sets the tone for what’s coming next – songs that dig deep, that feel personal but universal at the same time. I hope people feel seen when they hear it.”
In that way, “People Pleaser” becomes more than a song; it’s a mirror for anyone who’s ever given too much away in search of love, a space where longing and reckoning collide in a stunning, heartrending release.
Read our full conversation with Soda Blonde’s Faye O’Rourke and Adam O’Regan below, and listen to “People Pleaser” and the band’s latest single, “The Queen of Mercy,” wherever you stream music!
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:: stream/purchase People Pleaser here ::
:: connect with Soda Blonde here ::
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Stream: “People Pleaser” – Soda Blonde
A CONVERSATION WITH SODA BLONDE
Atwood Magazine: Faye, you've talked about “People Pleaser” being an “anthem for people who love too easily.” Can you share more about the inspiration behind this song - where it came from, and what it means to you?
Faye O’Rourke: “People Pleaser” came from a place of self-examination, as most of our songs do. It’s about the tendency to seek validation from strangers, sometimes at the expense of the real, meaningful love that already exists in your life. I often use songwriting as a way to better understand myself, and with this song, I was able to articulate something I’ve felt for a long time. It means a lot to me because it captures that moment of self-realization— the middle 8 offers a very literal vignette into some of my most regrettable moments. I’m usually a bit more cryptic with my writing, so that felt like crossing the Rubicon for me.
“I people please, it’s a kind of disease,” you sing in the chorus. There’s a deep, familiar pain embedded in your voice, and in that line. It turns these words into a rallying cry for those who have, intentionally or otherwise, hurt themselves by getting close to those we shouldn’t have. Is this song an anthem for breaking the cycle, do you think, or being stuck in it still?
Faye: That’s a great question, and I think the answer depends on where the listener is in their own journey. The song is definitely self-aware – there’s a recognition of the damage being done – but whether it’s about breaking free or being trapped in the pattern is open to interpretation. In some ways, it feels like an acknowledgment of the cycle rather than a clean break from it. Sometimes naming a thing is the first step toward moving past it.
Who is that singing the second verse – is it you, Adam? Congrats on your first “solo” with Soda Blonde! How did this song become a duet, and how do you feel the presence of two voices over one enhances the track?
Adam O’Regan: Yeah, that’s me on the second verse! This is the first time I’ve taken a lead vocal in a Soda Blonde song, so it’s definitely a new dynamic for us. We didn’t originally set out to make it a duet, but as the song developed, it became clear that having two voices – two perspectives – added something really powerful. Thematically, the song is about losing yourself in other people, so splitting the vocal makes it feel even more like a conversation or a shared experience. It also introduces a subtle shift in tone – almost like two sides of the same struggle.
I can’t help but recognize this song came out on Valentine’s Day. What, if any, is the significance of this decision?
Faye: It felt like the perfect day to put this song into the world. Valentine’s Day brings up a lot of different emotions for people – it’s not all romance and flowers. There’s longing, heartbreak, self-reflection. “People Pleaser” is about love, but it’s also about self-worth, and I think that makes it a fitting counterpoint to the usual Valentine’s sentiment. It’s a bit of a phony day anyway so it was cool to find a way to bring some meaning into it – for us.
What are your ultimate takeaways from “People Pleaser,” and what do you hope listeners take away from this song as Soda Blonde’s first single of 2025?
Faye: For me, the biggest takeaway is the power of self-awareness. The song doesn’t offer easy answers, but it lays things bare in a way that’s cathartic. I hope listeners hear themselves in it, whether that’s as a rallying cry or a moment of recognition.
Adam: Yeah, I think it’s about connection. It’s the first song of 2025 for us, and it sets the tone for what’s coming next – songs that dig deep, that feel personal but universal at the same time. I hope people feel seen when they hear it.
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:: stream/purchase People Pleaser here ::
:: connect with Soda Blonde here ::
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Stream: “People Pleaser” – Soda Blonde
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