Photo Credit: Lindsay Duncan
Grammy-nominated and JUNO Award-winning songwriter Rose Cousins is set to release her new album, Bravado, on February 21 via Outside Music. Today, she is sharing her new video for “The Fraud,” which appears on Bravado. The video features a performance with Atlantic String Machine and is directed by Shehab Illyas at Prince Edward Island’s Confederation Centre of the Arts; watch and share the video HERE, and pre-order Bravado HERE.
“‘The Fraud’ is the song that was the true seed for this whole record,” says Cousins. “The idea of shooting it in an empty theater as a live performance was the only way I could think to really capture its turbulent vulnerability.”The music video for Bravado’s lead single “The Benefits of Being Alone” recently premiered at Folk Alley, who call the “breezy new number…a breath of fresh air.”
Watch and share “The Benefits of Being Alone” HERE.
Cousins describes Bravado as a record for those who struggle with loneliness and those wishing they had more time alone—for those who struggle to connect with others, or even to connect with their true selves.
“I think about how we’re so disconnected,” says Cousins. “I get sucked into my phone and forget to go for a walk because of this sense of obligation I have that convinces me to get as much work done as possible. We’re missing what’s actually happening. I’ve been thinking about how we must be getting close to a breaking point.”
For Cousins, Bravado also marks a chapter of personal and professional growth: she is the producer on the record, applying her years of experience, trusting her own ear and pulling thoughtfully from her network of talented colleagues. “I booked some studio days with the intention of making a single and working with some Toronto based musicians I’d always wanted to including Joshua Van Tassel on drums, Robbie Grunwald on keys, Brian Kobayakawa on bass, Dean Drouillard on electric guitars and with Chris Stringer as engineer. Soon after, I realized I was chasing a theme and a feeling I’d been pondering for months and it turned into a whole record of, perhaps, my best writing.”
Cousins toured throughout the fall supporting Patty Griffin, and returns to Canada in March of 2020 with special guest John Paul White. Current tour dates can be found below, with a 2020 U.S. tour to be announced.Recently, Cousins shared her version of Prince’s classic, “I Would Die 4 U,” recorded together with Bear’s Den and Christof van der Ven while all were serendipitously in Toronto on a day off from tour. Listen to and share “I Would Die 4 U” HERE.
Cousins’ last project, Natural Conclusion, received notable acclaim, including a nomination for a 2018 Grammy Award, a nomination for Songwriter of the Year award at the 2018 JUNO Awards and three wins at the East Coast Music Awards. Cousins also writes for film and TV and her songs have appeared on the programs “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Supergirl,” “Reign” and “Nashville,” among others. She has shared stages with songwriters such as Patty Griffin, Shawn Colvin, Lori McKenna, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Jann Arden and Ron Sexsmith.
