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Photo: Oliver Seid

glaive is in the midst of a renaissance. The 18-year-old breakout artist first made waves helping shape the sound of hyperpop’s then still-forming landscape, but with his recent string of releases, the North Carolina native is coming into his own.

“all i do is try my best” follows singles “three wheels and it still drives!,” “as if,” and “im nothing thats all i am” in reintroducing us to glaive. The single, which will appear on glaive’s forthcoming album, i care so much that i dont care at all, set to release July 14, places the rising star against a backdrop of organic instrumentation and production as he details the struggles of coming into adulthood with an infectiously optimistic vigor. While the themes of teenage euphoria, angst, and questioning that permeated his earlier works remain a central driving force, they are now placed in the all-too-real context of having to pay your taxes for the first time and the universal pang of missing your parents.

“"all i do is try my best" is one of the last songs I wrote for the album,” shares glaive. “To me, it is by far the most hopeful glaive song I’ve ever made and represents the other side of the album that is more upbeat and reassured. I’ve always loved pop music and felt like I struggled to make good pop music until I made this. It’s quite beautiful to make a song that is truly positive in its nature.”

“all i do is try my best” feels like something taken from a Vampire Weekend record circa 2013, sitting in the passenger seat of your mom’s car as indie pop spills forth from the radio and scores your nascent adulthood. It’s a testament to glaive’s continued growth as both an artist and human. 

Watch the “all i do is try my best” video below: