Montreal Alt-Pop Artist dee holt Announces New EP ‘Loving In The Dark’ Out Aug 18; Shares “Tunnel Vision”

June 28, 2024 BY Emma Orland

Today, the ascending Montreal alt-pop artist dee holt is excited to announce her third EP release, loving in the dark, due out August 18th via Nettwerk. She shares the flirtatious cut “tunnel vision” along with a captivating new music video. dee worked with producer A.B. Eastwood (Kodak Black, Denzel Curry) and co-wrote the song with Nashville songwriter BRIGETTA (Fly By Midnight, Betty Who). 

On the song and process, she says, “you know that nervous feeling you get around your crush? the butterflies. the blushing. the awkwardness!!! that’s what tunnel vision is about. we wanted to write something exciting! and nothing is more exciting and nerve-racking than being face-to-face with your crush!! I co-wrote it with the talented Brigetta, and we had such a great time creating. We exchanged awkward crush and ‘beginning honeymoon phase’ stories. A.B. Eastwood did such a fantastic job with the track and created such a great space to work in. it was suuch an amazing session!”

The rhythmic beat and airy layered vocals set the tone for a perfect summer fling. Following “make a move” and “leaving alone,” dee is ushering in a new era as she pauses her visual art studies to focus on her music career. Her fresh indie-pop troubadour sound resembles contemporaries such as Billie Eilish, Gracie Abrams, Charlotte Cardin, & Holly Humberstone.

dee is also excited to bring her sound on the road delivering standout performances at Burlington Som and Montreal Jazz Festival. Up next, she’ll appear at FEQ, the Peterborough Music Festival, Toronto CNE, and Sommo Festival in Prince Edward Island.

WATCH & SHARE “TUNNEL VISION” MUSIC VIDEO:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xqF7pcFG6OM

DEE HOLT 2024 TOUR DATES:

July 14 – Festival D’eté – Quebec City, QC

July 24 – Peterborough Music Festival – Peterborough, ON

August 21 – Toronto CNE – Toronto, ON

September 13 – 14th – Sommo Festival – Cavendish, Prince Edward Island

ABOUT DEE HOLT:

dee holt is no longer facing the wall. At just 20 years old, the Montreal-born singer and songwriter is opening up—to the indie-pop music industry, eager audiences, and, most of all, herself. What lies within is a marvel to behold.

Indeed, the first time dee performed in public wasn’t on a stage or record label boardroom. She was with her parents, who were meeting her boyfriend’s family. Encouraged to bring out her guitar, dee agreed to play, but it had to be facing the wall.

“When I turned around, everyone was like, ‘Oh my god, we weren’t expecting you to actually be good!’” dee laughs. Of course, dee’s natural ear for hooks has always been there—ever since childhood when she’d tape herself making up songs on her parents’ VHS camera. Now, dee is on the verge of releasing an intimate and hook-packed third EP, ‘loving in the dark,’ via Nettwerk Music Group.

At first, dee took things gradually, juggling school and two part-time jobs—she needed to ensure this was what she really wanted. Because COVID lockdown had prevented dee from having a proper high school commencement ceremony, her mother offered to fund a few studio sessions as a graduation gift. That’s around the time dee met Montreal producer Benjamin Nadeau, a family friend, and now the singer’s closest creative collaborator. “Had it not been for my parents, my friends, and my boyfriend, I would not have done it,” dee says of pursuing music. “I’m super grateful for everyone and everything.”  

The industry, however, had other ideas. Upon releasing her first two singles, “Hardest Part” and “Olivia,” Spotify added them to their discovery-minded LOREM playlist. After signing with Nettwerk Music Group in 2022, dee released her debut EP, When I Close My Eyes, garnering millions of streams, numerous playlist covers, rave reviews, and even a Spotify billboard in downtown Toronto. The media also responded: Teen Vogue called dee “one to watch,” while SHEESH Media compared her vocals to the great Billie Eilish. Closing out 2023, dee gave a momentous debut performance at M for Montreal, which won praise from such Canadian press outlets as La Presse, Le Journal de Montreal, Cult MTL, RANGE, and more.

Today, dee is officially a full-time artist, embracing everything that comes with that title: spending time in songwriting and studio sessions, honing her live shows, and spearheading her creative direction; all dee’s album artwork and merch are self-drawn. “I’m really giving it my 100%,” dee says. “It’s kind of a different journey now, and I’m really enjoying it.”

dee’s steady evolution is immediately evident on her latest collection, which features five cohesive tracks—all written at different times—that span aesthetics, from eerie, Eilish-inspired productions to club-ready electropop and R&B. Created in close collaboration with Benjamin Nadeau and primarily written and recorded across Montreal, Nashville, and Los Angeles, loving in the dark grabs the listener with magnetic melodies and a relatable coming-of-age narrative.

DEE HOLT IN THE PRESS…

“The vibes generated by Montreal-based artist dee holt are deliberately visual, an immersive set of musical pictograms buoying and balancing sonic emojis into your ear canals. It’s wondrous and obvious, especially for an artist studying animation that can equal paint with both chords and oils.”

– Ones to Watch

“The confidence dee holt exudes… is only amplified by her crisp vocals, as she makes it sound oh-so-easy to dismiss a partner… she’s not messing around.”

– Billboard

“…a bright new offering in alt-pop… soft, charming, and wistful… making Dee Holt one to watch.”

– TeenVogue

“…holt is preparing to cement herself as a key figure in the ongoing renaissance of relationship-focused teen singer-songwriters with her upcoming 2023 release…

– RANGE

“It’s hard not to hear a resemblance in tonal similarities with the great Billie Eilish – which is the highest of compliments – yet dee has her own demeanor, soaked in banter and youthful bliss… dee holt is simply Canada’s next artist to keep close tabs on in 2022.”

– SHEESH Media

Download Single Artwork Here