Bennytheghost Better Be On Your Radar Thanks to New Single “Say Something”
WHEN HE WAS 13 YEARS OLD - Benjamin Hon and his friends walked onto their middle school stage for their 8th-grade talent show. Equipped with a self-taught rock version of the Pacabells canon and a guitar, Hon’s led his “band” through their very first performance. “It went… not bad, but not great, There is a video of it, and everyone is out of tune,” Hon laughs, “We were rushing so much and I was so nervous. My knees were like shaking, but that was the first time I ever did anything on guitar.”
That eighth-grade performance spurred countless projects that excited him to pursue music. “I don't know if anybody noticed how bad it was,” Hon said. “Cause everybody afterward said they thought it was great. And then … Here I am!”
After months of work and dedication, Benjamin Hon a.k.a. Bennytheghost releases his newest single, “Say Something” as part of his upcoming EP.
Hon’s genuine enthusiasm for music shines through the single and allows him to express a lively, emotional and self-deprecating introduction into his EP. He said he explored instrumental and lyrical style with his nontraditional format of “Say Something.” He was particularly inspired by Dominic Fike’s catchy song “Why.”
“I think that song is really cool,” Hon shares, “It just feels like it flows from one section to the other super nicely without needing to conform to traditional songwriting form.”
Rather than more common formats of songs, like Verse - Chorus - Verse - Chorus. “Say Something” follows the format: Chorus - Verse 1 - Verse 2 - Verse 3 - Chorus. “I wanted to do a song that like, it can kind of go through a bunch of different sections, and as long as like energy is flowing smoothly, you never notice that it’s nontraditional and not that weird,” he said.
Hon uses the format of “Say Something” and the three verses side by side to add dimension and guitar in the song's second half. In each new verse, Hon added new components of the intro chorus to lead toward the height of the song. While he works on his music projects, he always starts with his guitar. Hon said that the instrument is most natural to him and is a genre he is familiar and comfortable with. “I think deep down … I’m an instrumentalist before a singer. Or even before a writer. I’m a guitar player first out of everything,” Hon says.
“Say Something,” begins with the quiet strum of guitar dusting over vocals, creating a somber yet lively atmosphere. With the addition of various instruments, the initial chorus of the song brightens the track with its full but soft instrumental and catchy melody.
As the song reaches its first verse, the guitar grows silent. It’s slowly reintroduced through small sequences leading to the song's peak and the ending chorus. The slow addition of Hon’s guitar in the track guides the listeners' focus to the emotional and gritty guitar solo that surrounds the ending chorus. In the end, Hon’s vocals lull the song goodbye and It ends similar to how it began; A soft guitar strumming with the quiet hum of vocals peaking out.
Despite its self-deprecating lyrics, the single emits warm and upbeat energy, a common theme for Hon’s musical vision and hope for the future. “I think a lot of my songs have [the same] sentiment as ‘Say Something,’” Hon explains, “A lot of my lyrics will be about liking someone and wishing that it would work and just kind of fantasizing about what it would be like if it did, but it doesn’t.”
“Say Something” is the first single released off the EP 29 Palms, planned for release in late spring. Hon said a lot of songs on the EP have slightly different sounds or genres to listen to. “I am incredibly excited for all of [the songs], for my life and my journey,” Hon shares.
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