SALYA Confronts Social Exhaustion on New Single ‘TALK’

Raised in France and now based in the UK, rising indie alternative pop singer songwriter SALYA returns with her latest single, TALK, a candid and sharply self aware exploration of introversion in a world that constantly demands performance.

At its core, TALK captures the quiet tension between sensitivity and expectation. Playful yet emotionally weighted, the track reflects SALYA’s ability to transform deeply personal experiences into music that feels both intimate and widely relatable. It is a song about social fatigue, about the exhaustion that comes from pretending to be more available, more extroverted, more switched on than you truly feel.

Co produced with London based collaborator Jules Apollinaire, known for work with Suki Waterhouse, Declan McKenna and Miles Kane, TALK blends dreamy indie pop textures with a vintage alternative edge. Surf inspired 60s guitars shimmer over warm, minimal percussion, creating a sound that feels intentionally fragile and almost weightless. The arrangement builds gradually, layer by layer, until it reaches an emotional breaking point. What begins as restraint evolves into release, turning the song into something that feels like a lullaby for the emotionally exhausted.

Speaking on the track, SALYA explains:

“Pretending to be an extrovert when you’re not is exhausting. I have to get away to refi ll. That’s really all the song’s about. I said I was done talking that night, then I wrote a 4-minute song about it. Go figure.”

That duality sits at the heart of SALYA’s artistry. TALK leans into her signature timbre and unapologetic attitude, raw yet delicate, detached yet quietly defiant. The song moves with intention, beginning as a soft ballad about retreating from the world before erupting into a cathartic alternative rock outburst. The shift mirrors the emotional journey from shutdown to empowerment, from quiet withdrawal to reclaiming space on your own terms.

Lyrically, the track captures the numbness, irritation and blunt honesty that can accompany social burnout. It reflects the quiet rebellion that often surfaces in your late twenties, when the pressure to be endlessly cheerful or available begins to feel unsustainable. Rather than romanticising detachment, SALYA presents it as self preservation.

With TALK, SALYA further defines herself as a compelling new voice within the indie alternative pop landscape. Drawing subtle comparisons to the spirit of Mazzy Star and Karen O while carving out a space entirely her own, she continues to build a body of work rooted in vulnerability and refusal. With more music promised throughout the year, TALK feels less like a standalone statement and more like the opening chapter of something steadily unfolding.

SALYA is not simply writing about stepping back. She is choosing when to speak, when to retreat, and when to let the music say everything.

TALK is available now via all major platforms.

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