Alt-Pop Artist young friend Returns with New Gen-Z Anthem, “met this girl on the internet”

Today rising alt-pop artist Drew Tarves, better known as young friend, follows up his acclaimed EP HOW DID WE GET HERE? with the moody and mesmerizing new single + video “met this girl on the internet.” The angsty songwriter delivers a perfect Gen-Z anthem about the tensions of new love in the digital age. Half-hearted guitar strums give way to sullen vocals and textured piano lines as Tarves croons something in the way, that she types my name, makes me so naïve, that it’s hard to breathe. Listen to “met this girl on the internet on all digital retailers (here).

“Met this girl on the internet is about how online relationships can feel so consuming & exciting when they first begin. The song also explores the longevity of these relationships and how they often fizzle out,” explains Tarves.

The accompanying video was directed by Zachary Vague and sees young friend and his desk in various locations experiencing new love via the technology around him. It’s a gorgeous representation of how anyone anywhere can find a connection in an instant and how quickly it can disappear. 

Watch & Share “met this girl on the internet” Official Music Video:
https://youtu.be/upchIVDYHV8

With songs that sound like the last few coveted days of summer, 22-year-old Drew Tarves’ hopeful and honest perspective on the highs and lows of youth are embedded in his lyrics.

A trained dancer for most of his adolescence, the Vancouver native switched artistic disciplines after spending time jamming with his musician friends. “I found out very quickly that I loved it,” he recalls. “It was my favorite thing to do.” Armed with a guitar and a laptop, Tarves started hashing out early songwriting attempts on Garage Band as he found his own style that suited him: “It was all about experimenting while trying to find what worked for me.”

After releasing the buzz-building and rap-leaning mixtape yours kindly, in 2019, Tarves continued to refine his sound—drawing from the intimate indie rock of inspirations like Bon Iver, Phoebe Bridgers, and Andy Shauf—amassing millions of streams with a series of singles released over the last two years.

In September 2022, Tarves made his Nettwerk debut with HOW DID WE GET HERE? The release acts as a practical mission statement for this talented singer-songwriter—showcasing Tarves’ innate tunefulness and lovingly slack croon, which adorns this collection of wistful guitar pop that’s as thought-provoking as it is purely transportative. Written and recorded over the last year with the help of producers Aldn and marinelli (Wallace, Spill Tab), it captures the young friend project in a state of looking back while charting a new path forward. “I love that feeling of nostalgia, and I’m constantly searching for those old feelings throughout my life,” Tarves explains. “There’s something very beautiful about them that I’m attracted to.”

Drew Tarves’ music as young friend feels classic and immediate all at once, capturing the summer-sun nostalgia of post-adolescence while diving deep into a pool of self-reflection. The songs on his new EP, HOW DID WE GET HERE?,

HOW DID WE GET HERE? is the culmination of Tarves’ own musical journey. A trained dancer for most of his adolescence, the 22-year-old Vancouver native switched artistic disciplines after spending time jamming with his musician friends. “I found out very quickly that I loved it,” he recalls. “It was my favorite thing to do.” Armed with a guitar and a laptop, Tarves started hashing out early songwriting attempts on Garage Band as he found his own style that suited him: “It was all about experimenting while trying to find what worked for me.”

After releasing the buzz-building and rap-leaning mixtape yours kindly, in 2019, Tarves continued to refine his sound—drawing from the intimate indie rock of inspirations like Bon Iver, Phoebe Bridgers, and Andy Shauf—with a series of singles released over the last two years. HOW DID WE GET HERE? was largely written and recorded over the last year with the help of producers Aldn and marinelli (Wallace, Spill Tab). It captures the young friend project in a state of looking back while charting a new path forward. “I love that feeling of nostalgia, and I’m constantly searching for those old feelings throughout my life,” Tarves explains. “There’s something very beautiful about them that I’m attracted to.”

Indeed, HOW DID WE GET HERE? is packed with sun-kissed melodies and easy rhythms practically tailor-made for a long, gorgeous drive on a summer afternoon. But beyond the beauty, Tarves uses his voice to express tough feelings that are both generational and universal. First single “CRASH COURSE” examines the anxieties that come from worrying whether you’ve become other people’s problem: “It’s about feeling like a burden on somebody and feeling like you’re just making someone’s life more difficult,” he explains. “Writing it took a lot of digging into my own past and experiences.”

Over an appealingly jangly guitar riff, “GOOD GUY” features Tarves rhapsodizing about the eternal struggle of growth in the process of becoming what he defines as “a better person,” while the heart-thumping pulse of “WHEN WE WERE KIDS” uses nostalgia as a vessel to explore who we become as we age. “When I was a kid, I was this huge ball of energy who didn’t care about what people thought about me,” Tarves explains, before noting that “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become more insecure.”

Fittingly, the message that Tarves spreads as young friend—on HOW DID WE GET HERE? and beyond—is one of self-acceptance, as well as in finding and practicing empathy for others. “Don’t hold people to the standard of where they used to be,” he states while discussing his mental mission statement as an artist. “Accept when they’re changing, and do everything you can to appreciate the person they’re becoming.”

young friend IN THE PRESS…

“…summer anthems that sound otherworldly…”
–SHEESH MEDIA

“…young friend has established himself as a rising act in heartfelt pop, building an expansive sonic world brimming warm nostalgia and self-reflection.”
–EARMILK

“…Tarves’ music gives off an incomparable sincerity about the highs and lows of youth…”
–LADYGUNN

“…honest and bold…”
–The Luna Collective

“…perfect for any adolescent movie. Just wait for A24 to get this in a movie because, truth be told, it already has the storytelling ability to be a scene in one…”
–A1234

“…it is rare to encounter a new artist who immediately catches your ear and makes you develop an unhealthy obsession… which is exactly what happened to me with young friend…”
–When The Horn Blows