Rising New Zealand star Benee had a breakout year in 2019. The 20-year-old’s Gus Dapperton-featuring single “Supalonely” got some traction in the US and became her first Platinum single in the country. After releasing a pair of EPs last year, Benee is gearing up to drop her debut album, which she has previewed today with “Snail.”
The thumping pop tune is quite literally about snails, as she adopts a rhythmic and infectious cadence to sing on the chorus, “I’m like a snail, you’re a guy / Kinda mad I can’t fly / When it’s day, hide away / But come out when it rains.” Benee said of the song:
“When we were in lockdown, I was fascinated by snails. There wasn’t really a lot to be doing, so I would spend a lot of time outside looking at snails and would think about how they’re doing their own little thing and they’re all free. I just played around with the idea of being kind of like a snail and how I come out in the rain. Being stuck inside because of COVID, it’s kind of my lockdown song.”
An interest in snails isn’t some hat Benee is temporarily wearing for the sake of this song. She discussed her love for the creatures in a July interview (before “Snail” was announced), saying, “I think if I was to be anything other than a human, I think it would have to be a snail. […] I’ve just had a weird obsession with them since I was, like, five years old. I really, really hate it when I step on them on accident, like, it really, really crushes my soul. I also think they are cute, which is an unpopular opinion, I think.”
Listen to “Snail” above.