Nilüfer Yanya is back with “Like I Say (I runaway),” her first piece of new music since her lauded 2022 album PAINLESS.
With a hypnotic, restless guitar line, “Like I Say (I runaway)” is signature Nilüfer Yanya — evocative, engaging, and effortlessly catchy. The ’90s-esque guitar line is met with a flood of distortion when the chorus kicks in, and it sounds like an epiphany. “The minute I’m not in control/ I’m tearing up inside,” Yanya sings in each refrain with conviction.
Co-written with close collaborator Wilma Archer, Yanya centers “Like I Say (I runaway)”around preciousness of time. “It’s about how you choose to spend your time,” Yanya writes in a statement, “Time is like a currency, every moment. You’re never going to get it back. It’s quite an overwhelming thing to realize.” The song is also paired with a music video directed by Yanya’s sister, Molly Daniel, and depicts her as a runaway bride sprinting off into the countryside. Watch the video below.
Nilüfer Yanya hasn’t put out any solo music since 2022’s PAINLESS — which we named as one of the best albums of the year — but she did release collaborations with Bombay Bicycle Club and remixes of PAINLESS standout “midnight sun” courtesy of Sampha and King Krule. “Like I Say (I runaway)” is also Yanya’s first release since signing to Ninja Tune records.
Revisit our 2022 interview with Nilüfer Yanya, where the singer and songwriter discussed bringing PAINLESS on the road, her dream collaborators, and how she was on her way to a much-needed vacation.