One of the most prolific and authentic voices in independent music, Sarantos has delivered his latest single, “Somethin’ to Believe In” – available now! The emotional rock ballad, accompanied by a compelling music video, walks a tightrope between hope and hopelessness. But the space in between isn’t empty – it’s where Sarantos finds himself, and he hopes the listener will as well.
The award-winning Chicago-based multi-instrumentalist takes and offers comfort through music, drawing on personal challenges like losing his father to lung cancer in 2010. The solo artist is not afraid to explore genres ranging from rock to pop to hip-hop channeling the human spirit. His music has garnered Grammy considerations, several top-ten and #1 placements on independent charts and worldwide radio play without the help of a record label. It’s hard to believe but Sarantos doesn’t use a professional studio to make any of his music! His musical output throughout his 9-year career is impressive, releasing 18 albums with 226 original tracks as well as 9 fiction/fantasy books while amassing a catalog of 4,000 original songs and a devoted social media following of more than 1 million.
On “Somethin’ to Believe In,” Sarantos’ powerful vocals are front and center, layered above a mournful piano that eventually gives way to triumphant rock guitar riffs. Providing an elegant visual accompaniment, the music video “has a haunting quality to it as it unveils a story that both parents and lovers can relate to,” Sarantos says.
“It comes across as emotionally authentic and heartfelt,” Sarantos says of the video. “The footage taken by itself is pretty simple yet when put together somehow seems to become much more complex. It will remind you of some of the saddest days of your life, days filled with disappointment and heartache, but the story also splashes the naivete of hopefulness throughout, giving you something to believe in.”
The video for the single opens with Sarantos and a woman who hides behind her sunglasses wandering an outdoor landscape separately, Sarantos seeming forlorn, and the woman apparently distressed. The song’s words of encouragement and support appear aimed at the woman, but her relationship with Sarantos is unclear – is she a friend? A lover? A family member?
“All I can do is tell you to fight it/and help you get the ship righted/I hope you know I’m never leavin’/I’ll always give you somethin’/Somethin’ to believe in,” Sarantos sings.
The video ends on an uplifting note, with Sarantos and the woman finally encountering each other. She puts down her phone and engages with Sarantos and the public art around them, transcending her inner conflict through human connection. The musical transition from minor to major chords drives home the transition with all the satisfaction of an ‘80s power ballad.
“This rock song is a hug, like a parent or friend reaching down to pick you up out of a hopeless pit, and giving you something to believe in – yourself,” Sarantos says, describing the single.
But just as the woman surfaces from her inner world, so too do the lyrics rise above the scene playing out in the video with the narrator’s subtle shift from “I” to “we.”
“And all we can do is tell you to fight it/and help you get the ship righted/I hope you know we’re never leavin’/We’ll always give you somethin’/Somethin’ to believe in/Somethin’ to believe in.”
The listener is thrown off-balance, wondering who the singer is and who is the subject. Maybe the song is aimed at the version of Sarantos that exists in the flux of the moment, speaking from the point of view of the Sarantos that’s already gotten to wherever it is he’s going. Or perhaps it’s the listener Sarantos is crooning to – the person grappling with their own sense of uncertainty as he humbly offers a helping hand. Whoever the subject, they’ll need to do their own homework to shift their perspective. “Somethin’ to Believe In” offers a guiding beacon of light for all those who feel lost in darkness.
