Silver Otto has a new single out and it lands right on time. “Favorite,” out May 15 via the Bay Area-via-New York pop project of TJ Sonnier, is a satin-smooth piece of summer pop built on addictive melodies, warmly layered production, and vocals that pull you in and don’t let go.
The song follows “I Really Need to Know,” which earned Silver Otto genuine critical heat, with Ladygunn declaring him “the pop alter ego we needed” and Kaltblut noting the track’s video drew on cinematic references ranging from Psycho to Showgirls to capture its sense of isolation and obsession. “Favorite” moves in a different emotional direction, looser and more intoxicating, but carries the same melodic precision.
Sonnier describes the track as a collision of 90s boy band structure and Rihanna-era production, built around the feeling of all-consuming, impossible love. “The song is about all consuming, cherubic, insane, and to me at least, destructive love,” he says. “This song is dedicated to the kid who has been fighting to make music his life because it is, well, his Favorite.”
“Favorite” is co-written by Louie Diller, Sean Walsh, Liz Nistico, and Bonnie McKee, and produced by Diller. The combination is immediately felt. The track moves with warmth and momentum, a hypnotic breakdown in the third act pulling things inward before the beat snaps back with full force.
Silver Otto created his project to reconnect with something essential, back to tarot cards and letters to Paula Abdul, as he puts it. The music carries that spirit: unguarded, melodic, and genuinely fun. “Favorite” is out May 15.