"Trying My Best" is the anthem we all need. Life can be challenging - from work stress to health, to maintaining relationships - it's easy to become overwhelmed. This song serves as a reminder that at the end of the day trying our best is what really matters. This stunning ballad features Anson's heartfelt vocals atop a simple piano melody. Bare and stripped down to the soul, you can hear his honesty pour out from every word.
This song is nothing short of spectacular. This song made me tear up in the first 10 seconds. The vulnerability of this incredible artist will send chills down your spine. I think everyone needs the song. Everyone knows what it is like to put on a brave face and grit their teeth and just push through. Whether it be a bad day in school or work, maybe a hard time with family or friends, maybe someone you love is distant, we have all had a hard day and this song is the embodiment of a hand to hold through those times. As I write this review I think of my best friend, this song gives me the same feeling that talking with her for hours does. That kind of vulnerability is rare in songs now and this truly is a true example of artistry.
The single comes with a humbling video - made up of individual's real stories and their personal struggles. In this call to action #TryingMyBest, Anson encourages people to lay it all out in an act of camaraderie.
Cut from the same cloth as creatives like Ben Folds, Regina Spektor, and Yiruma, Anson Seabra possesses a quality of assuredness that is hard to come by.
Seabra grew up in Kansas City and began playing piano at the age of 6. He joined his high school's jazz band, one of the most prestigious high school band programs in the country, playing alto sax from grades 6-12.
In university, Anson took a different route. He got his degree in computer science and wrote code for iPhone apps. However, it wasn't long before something changed and inspiration struck. "I remember specifically one day in the summer of 2015, sitting at my desk at a nice corporate internship I had been working, and this song came on my Spotify that really made me feel something I had never felt before. The song was 'Old Thing Back' by Matoma, it came on one of my Spotify recommended playlists and I just remember thinking...this is incredible...I never thought music could sound like this. It's still one of my all-time favorite songs. Anyways that sort of got me thinking, why wasn't I trying to make music like that? Who was to say I couldn't create something similar?"
After a year of working as a software engineer on the East Coast, he ultimately realized music was where his passion lies. In 2018, Anson made it happen. "I left my software engineering job to do music full time," he explains. "I had the idea that if I just posted a ton of songs on YouTube then maybe my channel would get noticed and I could either make some money directly off of YouTube or get the attention of people in the industry or sign a deal or something." And here we are.
Anson's leap of faith has certainly landed him in a good spot. In the past year, he has garnered over 190K YouTube subscribers and over 96K Spotify followers, his single "Robin Hood" is doing 74K streams a day on Spotify, and a Tik Tok of this song saw 1.5M views in 24 hours. Anson has been supported by tastemakers like Koala Kontrol, received placements on Spotify's New Music Friday and more.
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Review by Hannah Schneider