THURSDAY, 1ST MAY 2025

Hemi Hemingway confronts ghosts of the past with '(To Be) Without You'

With the haunted elegance of a lost love letter and the swagger of a well-cut suit under moonlight, Te Whanganui-a-Tara’s enigmatic crooner Hemi Hemingway returns with his latest single, “(To Be) Without You,” out April 29 via Swedish tastemakers PNKSLM Recordings.

Known for his velvet touch on heartbreak and retro flair, the alter ego of Shaun Blackwell channels 60s pop, 50s romance, and 80s melancholy into something darkly cinematic and irresistibly modern. Written after a trip to Greece in 2022, '(To Be) Without You' captures a moment of emotional limbo—caught between cities, relationships, and versions of the self. “I was carrying a hidden sadness while I was there, and it knew,” Hemingway reflects. That weight surfaces in the track’s aching hooks and in the ghostly figure of The Apparition—a haunting presence in the music video that mirrors his reckoning with loss and change.

With a past that spans underground bands and support slots for the likes of Kurt Vile and C.W. Stoneking, Hemingway continues to refine his own brand of romantic devastation. “(To Be) Without You” is one of his most personal—and powerful—statements yet.