Having shared with us the euphoria of hitting the road on ‘Highway Love’ – which Tyra Baker of The Honey Pop called ‘a whimsical wanderlust track’ – Berlin-based singer-songwriter Chris de Sarandy strikes a lot more solemn note with his upcoming EP ‘Know Your Worth’ (out 12 May). Over the course of 10 electro-acoustic bedroom pop songs written in the past 4 years in his to-the-point conversational style, de Sarandy’s coming-of-age EP talks us through his experiences of growing through love and loss. 

“A lot of the songs are based on relationships from my teens that developed into my twenties. All these relationships made me who I am today.”

Steeped in bittersweet nostalgia of leaving behind everything we hold dear – friends, family, and relationships, the one true constant in his life – to stay true to himself, ‘Know Your Worth’ retraces Chris’ steps on a path leading from the UK to Berlin: the first signs of trouble in Cornish paradise (‘Small Town Queen’), watching the embers of the relationship fade (‘Autopilot’), and with a benefit of hindsight asking ‘We had it all but was it worth keeping?’ (‘Highway Love’) until finding a new home and accepting the flawed world with a sense of resignation (‘That’s Life’).

Above all, ‘Know Your Worth’ is a tribute to one of de Sarandy’s closest friends whose life was tragically cut short by suicide. The sense of irrevocable loss experienced by de Sarandy as a result of his friend’s untimely passing has been beyond words, and not least because of the unconditional faith he had put in de Sarandy’s career. “He was actually the first person outside my own family who said I can do this, that I could go all the way,” de Sarandy fondly recollects. “That always stuck with me, that kind of belief and trust that it’s going to work out.”

‘Mate, was there something I could have done?
Oh, I hate thinking how you were so young.’

Starting from the title, ‘Know Your Worth’ is in many ways a testament to the cathartic power of writing. “It became a saying used in my friendship grouphttps://www.guerilla-music.de/wp-admin/admin.php?page=w3tc_userexperience as a tribute to him,” de Sarandy explains. “This friend of mine got it tattooed on him, dedicated to my mate.” Out of all tracks, nowhere is this more present than on the interlude called ‘Worth’, a letter addressed to de Sarandy’s friend that starts: “Mate, was there something I could have done? / Oh, I hate thinking how you were so young.”

Not unlike a motivational TED Talk or a self-help book, ‘Know Your Worth’ invites us to consider the importance of a healthy self-esteem in every aspect of life. “A lot of the songs on the EP have a theme of not always appreciating yourself. Knowing my worth is something I still struggle with,” de Sarandy admits. “You have to be able to understand your own worth to understand someone else’s worth. I want this to be a message to shine a light on that topic.”

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Listen the ‘Know Your Worth’ EP: https://chrisdesarandy.lnk.to/knowyourworth