Josh Jensen collaborates with Hannah Wyatt

Seattle-based singer-songwriter Josh Jensen makes music that sits between folk and pop, channelling his own life experience via storytelling that goes beyond surface-level sentiment. With influences ranging from Leon Bridges and Lianne La Havas to Chris Stapleton and Billy Strings, his work pays homage to roots traditions while stepping forward into the present.

His musical journey began over a decade ago with the 2012 debut Unravel The Wire, a record that introduced his emotive voice and poignant lyrical writing to listeners. But rather than ride the momentum, he disappeared from the spotlight for years for a long hiatus that made his eventual return all the more powerful. When he reemerged in 2022 with his second album Moon Time, it was a full-circle moment that reaffirmed his voice in the indie folk landscape.

Since then, he’s been steadily releasing music, resulting in his recent third full-length record This Is Where We Landed, a profoundly personal offering shaped in part by his wife’s battle with breast cancer and a period of deep reflection. Love, family, wandering, mortality; these aren’t just abstract themes, but the very threads that run through Josh’s songwriting.

Now, Josh Jensen continues his creative adventure with the release of his latest single titled “Be Human,” a collaboration with indie folk artist Hannah Wyatt. The track thematically leans into the complexities of the modern world, offering a call for empathy and connection in fractured times. Inspired in part by the new Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown and the dissonance of current events, the song asks something simple yet vital: in the chaos, can we still find a way to be human?

Josh’s initial recording, captured on a phone, gives the song a homespun quality that only adds to its intimacy and from there, Hannah’s vocals and the engineering work of Luke Rain help shape the track into something that feels both truly personal and widely relatable. Brought in by the delicate plucks of acoustic guitar and piano, the bright notes tumble to form an inviting and charming arrangement as Josh’s heartfelt vocals enter to stitch graceful melodic leads into the gentle musical fabric.

Building with wistful string textures, a timeless folk sound takes hold as Hannah’s voice glides in to deliver a stunning duet between the two artists. Tinged with the delightful flourish of lead string lines and instilled with meaningful lyrics throughout, “Be Human” sees Josh Jensen and Hannah Wyatt cast a truly beautiful slice of sincere songwriting, brought to life via superb performance and enduring arrangement.

Listen to Be Human below

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