Though she’s just 25-years-old, R&B singer La Hara (aka YouTube personality Bri Hall) has had to say good-bye to some dear friends, and the grieving process has inspired her newest track, “Hereafter.” A haunting slice of music that melds dream-pop with the beat of a broken heart, “Hereafter” resonates long after the song ends. La Hara has deftly crafted a song that mirrors the anguish of grief: layered vocals that rush in like a flooding sadness; sparse moments that capture the isolating pain that comes with loss; and a hazy production reminiscent of the haze one feels when realizing someone you love is no longer there to text you back. The video for “Hereafter” features La Hara going through all the stages of grief until that final moment of acceptance offers a semblance of closure. It’s a powerful video for a song with a powerful message.
“Hereafter means life after death,” Bri Hall tells HollywoodLife. “I wrote this song about life after the passing of a loved one and what life is like when you’re learning to cope. I’m just turning 25 and I’ve already lost so many of my friends due to violence or suicide… in the double digits. I never learned growing up that sadness was a normal part of the emotional spectrum. When I was sad, it was always, ‘cheer up’ or ‘stop crying.’ Now that I’m a little older, I see how this can make grief that much harder to process. I want to show people, urban youth especially, that sadness and recovery is a process, and it is human. This is not the end for you and what you are going through is universally relatable.”
If Bri Hall or La Hara seems familiar – and you’re not one of the near 725k people subscribed to her YouTube channel — one of her tweets went viral during the height of the recent Popeye’s Chicken Sandwich craze. “While Popeyes is cool and all if you live in the DMV area you should check out Roaming Rooster in DC. It’s Black owned, and the founder Mike is Ethiopian born. He grew the family business from a food truck and has always been kind,” she tweeted in August, proving that she always keeps it 100, and cares deeply about giving back to the community.
Though still in the early days of her music career, Bri has already caused a buzz with her songs “Unlawful” and “Mindful.” The latter song and the corresponding video was to “serve as a reminder to pick up the phone and call that friend or family member,” she told NYLON. “Ask your coworker how they’re really doing, and to see the humility in our communities. Also, check in with yourself and your own mental and emotional health. My voice is the voice of you and your most intimate circle telling you, ‘I just needed you to be mindful of me.'”