OneRepublic release 'Better Days' after recording song in quarantine, ask fans to contribute clips for video
American pop-rock group OneRepublic unveiled a new song 'Better Days' on March 25, which was surprisingly written and recorded while the band was in quarantine. Both OneRepublic and its label, Interscope Records, are going to donate a portion of the proceeds from the streaming of the new single to benefit MusiCares' COVID-19 Relief Fund, through September 2020. The MusiCares fund seeks to help those affected by the coronavirus in the music community.
'Better Days' is slated to appear on the group's next album, 'Human'.
The band is also inviting its fans to be a part of the inspiring new song by submitting their videos for the 'Better Days' music video. The videos should show either acts of kindness from home or footage of first responders providing aid during the pandemic.
In addition, the band wants to hear from survivors, people who creatively express what they are doing while staying isolated at home, volunteers on how they are keeping healthy, what they are cooking, how they are virtually staying connected with loved ones and even how their pets are keeping them company. They have also requested fans to send safely recorded footage of their neighborhood or city and how things have changed during the pandemic, according to Variety. The videos will be collected over the next couple of days through the Cinebody app.
On the composition of the 'Better Days' song, frontman Ryan Tedder said, "We were in the final week of our fifth album deadline when a global pandemic was declared by the WHO. A few of us unknowingly got exposed to somebody with Covid-19 in London and ended up in quarantine in LA at my studio for two weeks. With only two songs left to finish, one of them happened to be 'Better Days'. We write about real experiences and events that happen to us — this is what happens when you write a song during a crisis."
With the announcement of the hopeful new song, fans on Twitter shared their sentiments about the song. Many said the song comes at the right time, given the pandemic.
A fan said, "Thanks for this special gift in a difficult period like this. Thanks for your magic, thanks for your music!" Another said, "The song is amazing and soooo accurate. People need a hope nowadays and they need to believe that there’ll be better days (sic)."
Fans are already finding the song addictive with one saying, "It's already on repeat." Another said, "I have it on repeat and I cried listening to it, as always you guys made an amazing song". One fan even declared, "It's the only song that makes any sense at the moment!"
You can listen to 'Better Days' here.