PinkPantheress and Willow's "Where you are" Is a Melancholic Dream Come True
Photo: Christine Kim
WILLOW and PinkPantheress laying their fairy-esque vocals over a Paramore sample is the fever dream we never want to wake up from.
"Where you are," featuring production credits from Skrillex and Mura Masa, tells a story of wilted love. When the butterflies in your stomach go acidic and longing morphs into desperation. It's a drowning you'll live an entire life evading, and yet, when WILLOW and PinkPantheress breathe art out of it, the pain suddenly hurts good.
Both artists have the unique ability of making both a love song sound tragic and a tragic song sound romantic. A duo we weren't even remotely aware we desperately needed until the breakout UK artist and producer began teasing the collaboration on TikTok, everything about this makes sense. If we could turn the harshness of WILLOW meeting PinkPantheress's soft angst into a scented candle, we absolutely would.
It's important to pay homage to the artists that paved way, and let's all be honest, Paramore's Hayley Williams walked so today's alt girls could run. Sampling "Never Let This Go" off of the band's 2005 album All We Know Is Falling, there's a subtle nod of gratitude. And with Olivia Rodrigo suffering the consequences of not crediting Paramore on "good 4 u," it's a nod well overdue.
The single follows PinkPantheress' 2021 project to hell with it, which is impressive for an artist that has garnered so much momentum off of internet stardom. She's deliberate with how much of us she offers, both musically and on social media, careful not to oversaturate or overextend.
Meanwhile, WILLOW has been on a collaborative tour, teaming up with other songstresses like Camila Cabello and Siiickbrain. And yet, there's something special about this particular single. "Where you are" is melancholic, dreamy, and sure to reopen a wound you were sure you've healed already, but isn't its disregard for linear healing the beauty of heartbreak?
Watch the "Where you are" video below:
