Ava Valianti’s “Running on Empty”: A Heartfelt Look at Love, Loss, and Growing Up
In her new heartfelt single “Running on Empty,” sixteen-year-old indie pop singer-songwriter Ava Valianti has demonstrated that emotional depth does not seem to have an expiration date. Ava Valianti is from Newbury, Massachusetts, and delivers a track that feels both timeless and contemporary while relying on introspection and vulnerability in that bittersweet space between love and loss. “Running on Empty” appears as the emotional centerpiece of Ava's debut EP Petunias, and it encapsulates the hollow ache of realizing that loss doesn't always come romantically, steadily fading, moment by moment, to the point where silence becomes deafening.
"Running on Empty" was written in a hotel room following several days of live shows in New York City, as the experience of exhaustion unfolded into emotional honesty and retrospection. The song captures the feeling of emotional exhaustion when love becomes a memory and memory becomes nothing. The music, with its haunting melodicism and plaintive yet ethereal vocals from Ava, conveys an appropriate sense of quiet heartbreak. The production is a minimal collection of atmospheric synths, reverb-drenched guitars, and subtle percussion, which gives room for Ava's voice to sound both precise and sincere. The resulting soundscape is intimate, and the artist recalls indie pop storytellers like Gracie Abrams, Olivia Rodrigo, and Phoebe Bridgers while retaining a tender softness exclusively inhabiting Ava's work.
"Running on Empty" is more than a breakup song; it's a contemplation about emotional exhaustion and perseverance. Ava's songwriting displays an incredible sense of awareness for her age, elevating ephemeral teenage moments to universal ruminations about the connections and losses of humanity. Her lyricism has a sense of poetic vulnerability, balancing tenderness and strength. When she sings about running on fumes of hope and feelings, there is an experience of the heartbreak and bravery it takes to continue.
From her debut project, Petunias, this song showcases Ava's overarching artistic intent to find beauty in the things we overlook. Like the flower that her debut EP is named after, "Running on Empty" blossoms softly and unassumingly, then reveals its depth and color the closer you get to it. This is a bold sign of Ava Valianti's burgeoning talent as a songwriter and as a storyteller, capturing the hearts of youth with emotional awareness beyond her years.
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Website: https://www.avavaliantimusic.com
