Singer-Songwriter Dylan Dunlap Releases ‘Soldier On’ EP
February 27, 2021 BY Nettwerk
Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist Dylan Dunlap announces the release of his EP Soldier On today, via Nettwerk Records. Leading up to the EP release, Dylan dropped his single “Follow My Echo” and it wasted no time skyrocketing to over 172K streams (adding to his already existing 20+ million streams), landing placements on over 28 New Music Friday Playlists across the globe, and garnering rave reviews from places such as MTV who stated; “This song deserves to soundtrack a movie and I will firmly stand by this.“
The EP, Soldier On, pairs difficult themes with uplifting melodies, showcasing Dylan’s innate ability to craft deeply personal narratives into power pop eloquence. Additionally, he draws inspiration from a lifelong obsession with film. Citing favorites such as Whiplash and Baby Driver, Dylan has watched every theatrical-released film since 2014. He filtered his love of film into the EP, penning “Follow My Echo” about Finding Nemo. “I used to go to the movies every few days for an escape and really struggled for a bit when everything shut down back in March. I thought that the best way to cope with a pandemic was to write about anything other than a pandemic, so I decided to write about one of my favorite movies instead: Finding Nemo.” Adding, “I resonate so much with the message of learning to let go of somebody, but also never giving up on them.”
Title track “Soldier On,” is an inspiring, romantic number about overcoming fear and fighting for love, knowing “somebody loves me, my heart, and even my mind,” says Dylan. “It’s a wake-up call to not just live to survive, it’s also a love letter that shares one single feeling – If I am with her, then I could never be without.”
Meanwhile, “What We Had” opens up about a particularly tumultuous formative situation with an unexpectedly uplifting melody. “Even though I could share 100 bad memories, I’m sharing the one good memory,” he elaborates. “I don’t have to be a bad man, because someone else was. I want to spread this message like wildfire: we are not what we have, we are not our past, and we are not our trauma. There’s a big sense of community to the EP.”
We can relate to each other with an empathy that binds us, and Dylan Dunlap invites this level of intimacy in his music. With his raw lyrics, he resembles the voice on the other end of the line during your most honest conversation. Opening an unfiltered dialogue, Dylan says, “I hope my music is an invitation to feel and know it’s okay. If your sentence is incomplete, I’d love to accidentally finish it for you and get you more in tune with what you’re experiencing. Music is my way to vocalize that.”
“Another Holiday,” a different take from the usual holiday music one has come to expect during that time of the year. “This track isn’t optimistic. Sometimes people need to hear that it’s okay to be upset, angry, confused, and depressed. I’ve come to find that a lot of my life has been made up growing through the grieving and that’s exactly the kind of environment I want to welcome my listeners into with this.”
On top of his artist pursuits, Dylan has put in countless hours of work to raise awareness around mental health. In this mission, Dylan received the “Fighting Stigma Rising Star” award from the National Alliance on Mental Illness and has partnered with Global Citizen, Autism Rocks, LA’s Children Hospital, To Write Love On Her Arms, Sound Mind Live, and many other organizations.
Listen To Title Track “Soldier On” Here:
Track List:
1. Seriously
2. What We Had
3. Another Holiday
4. Follow My Echo
5. Soldier On
6. If That’s Alright
