Peyton Stilling Gets Very Honest With Her “Healing”

Heartbroken over a boy, living with her folks, broke and jobless. That in and of itself describes pretty much every teenage girl at some point in their lives, but that’s the difference between Peyton Stilling and every other teenage girl. While for them that might be just part of their norm, that snapshot in time was the catalyst for Peyton Stilling’s future.

Moody. Sultry. Barren yet loud and intentionally vulnerable might be the best way to describe the Dallas native’s newest song “Healing.” Noting artists such as Maggie Rogers, Lianne La Havas, UMI, Audrey Mika, and H.E.R. as musical influences, Stilling brings the synth with the best of them but allows just enough room for her lyrics to cut through and make their impact felt.

“Healing” was written during quarantine. I’d just broken up with my boyfriend, had to move back in with my parents, and had no money or job,” recalls Stilling. “I wanted to write a song that made other people going through what I went through not feel as alone.

“I want this song to remind people to be patient with themselves. I felt really alone when I wrote this song and now, I am finally on the other side of it. If I can make a handful of people feel understood, I would feel like I have done my job.”

If quarantine has given us anything it’s been time at home so as you might imagine, “Healing” isn’t the only song Peyton has written recently. In fact, she had crafted nearly two dozen songs by the time she felt ready to slow down on the writing and start putting them together to share with the world. Yet these were different than what the world already knew of her. Though she might not be a household name, she’s built up some considerable street cred over the last few years. Her debut song “Forest Through the Trees” laid a solid base amassing over 200k Spotify streams. So, to ensure these new tunes got the proper treatment they deserved, Stilling enlisted the help of team locknkey, which consists of Moses Elias and Robert Sewell.

Still, with all its polished pop production aside, the backbone of “Healing” is in its writing. Stark naked and real, Stilling pulled back the curtains for everyone to get a good look at a time when hurt and upheaval ruled her world. An impressive feat, considering even the most veteran songwriters often have difficulties writing stories they reside in in real life. It’s one thing to create a story or hide your place in a song, but it’s something else entirely to let the world see the naked truth.

“I think “Healing” is the most honest I have ever been with my songwriting.  I hope my listeners feel my transparency and can relate and vibe out to this new song.”