By Alexandra Pullen
Returning with the announcement of her second album Cruel World, releasing 10th April, Lincolnshire-born singer-songwriter Holly Humberstone has released her first song since last year, named To Love Somebody. Although fans were not left waiting for long after Humberstone’s Die Happy became available to stream, they were certainly ready for this huge comeback.
Co-written with long-time collaborator Rob Milton (who has previously worked with The 1975 and Hard Life) and Jon Green (other co-writing credits include tracks by Kylie Minogue and James Bay), the song signals a shift into pure pop with sounds of Olivia Rodrigo, Gracie Abrams, Alessi Rose and Nell Mescal.
To Love Somebody opens with ethereal harmonies from Humberstone before launching head first into well-crafted lyrics, underpinned by a prominent drum beat and an acoustic guitar rhythm which is reminiscent of Scissor Sisters’ I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’. The pre-chorus bulks out the track more with some chanting vocals, building up to the chorus which contains the repetitive refrain “to ___ somebody”. While it may be a deliberate choice used for emphatic effect, in the latter half of the song the pre-chorus and chorus both become quite repetitive and do I wish there was more movement throughout the track to pack more of a punch. This being said, going into the final pre-chorus, Humberstone’s beautiful vocals are accompanied by some equally elegant strings which sound similar to that of About You by The 1975.
Humberstone has been commended for her songwriting abilities, having won the Rising Star Award at the BRITs in 2022, and in the same year, Haunted House was nominated for the Best Song Musically and Lyrically Ivor Novello Award. The same can be said for To Love Somebody. She states in the pre-chorus, “And the sh*t they say in the songs you love/The greatest hits and the deepest cuts/It all breaks down, it always does/It all works out, it always does”.
Humberstone has the ability to jumble up a cocktail of emotions and express them so concisely. In this song, she tackles love, loss, heartbreak and reflection: “…Loving hard is a painful thing and there are two sides to love and they exist in the same space to me. They are all real, brutal and vulnerable experiences. This blue and green ball just keeps spinning, and you learn to ride things out.” In a reference to Alfred Lord Tennyson’s sentiment, Humberstone suggests, it is better to have loved and lost, than never have loved at all.
In the track’s music video, we see Holly dancing with a Frankenstein’s creature/Nosferatu-esque man whom she referred to as “death” on her Instagram post. “… He may look scary but turns out he’s just a cutie !!” This seems to be somewhat of a metaphor for the death of a relationship, or being haunted by the thoughts of a past love. It is a very aesthetically pleasing spin on Victorian Gothic, meets modern grunge.
The anticipation surrounding Humberstone’s growth in 2026 does not end with the release of Cruel World, which comes out on 10th April. Throughout February, she is touring Europe before a stripped-back UK tour in March, followed by shows in Glasgow, Manchester, Bristol and London at the back end of the month leading into the beginning of April. Going into the summer, she will perform on festival stages worldwide including Coachella, Governor’s Ball and Mad Cool!
It’s going to be a hugely exciting year for the singer, and I can’t wait for the recognition which is bound to come from it.
UPCOMING DATES:
29 March 2026 — Old Fruit Market, Glasgow, UK
30 March 2026 — New Century Hall, Manchester, UK SOLD OUT
01 April 2026 — Electric, Bristol, UK SOLD OUT
02 April 2026 — Shepherd’s Bush Empire, London, UK SOLD OUT
Text Copyright 2026 © Alexandra Pullen/ADRENALINE Magazine
Photography Copyright 2026 © to its rightful owners.
Madi Briggs 
Casey Brockbank