Catapulted to viral success after 2020 single “Before I Go” was shared in a clip posted by TikTok megastar Charli D’Amelio, 21-year-old Mimi Webb landed her first UK top 10 single with the empowerment anthem ‘Good Without’ in early 2021, mining the breakdown of her relationship and turning up gold. “I want people to feel something when they hear these songs,” she tells Apple Music. “That really emotional goosebumps feeling. Big, heart-wrenching choruses.” Taking influence from Adele, Lewis Capaldi, and Emeli Sandé, her debut EP Seven Shades of Heartbreak captures the conflicting, and at times confusing, emotions that swirl during a split. “It was definitely something that I had to do to help me realize what was going on in my life,” Webb says, of writing the record. “As much as I've got all my family and my friends and my team and my close people around me, day to day I'm on my own. You've got to be able to have that strength in your own mind to keep you going. That's a really big lesson I've learned.” Here, she guides us through her EP, track by track.
“Dumb Love”
“‘Dumb Love’ was inspired by seeing an ex again and the nostalgic feeling for my past relationship—that first love where it was so giddy and exciting and ‘dumb.’ It ended up being a difficult couple of years, and I never thought I could have a friendship with him because I was so heartbroken from it. But he's actually really lovely and supportive and a good friend now. It gives me hope for my relationship that I've just come out of, because I think if I can get back to this place with him, I can do it with anyone.”
“24/5”
“This song is about a past situation I’ve been in where on the weekdays they’re there, and you feel really comfortable, it’s all great. Then on the weekends they go off, turn into someone completely different and forget about you. Come Monday, they’re back and they want to be with you again. We should be able to have that time apart and still feel stable in the relationship—how do we make it work?”
“Little Bit Louder”
“I wrote this about a feeling I had in the relationship I was just recently in. I always knew there was something not right, something was missing, and I kind of blamed myself for it. I was in the studio with [UK songwriting and production team] TMS and [LA songwriter] Sean Douglas and I was talking about how I just didn’t know what was up because it was great on paper but I just didn’t feel incredible anymore, and we jumped on this idea that I was trying to take responsibility. It’s got a really fun vibe to it; it’s not sad, it’s very like, ‘Oh, I think I know what the problem is! I’m not loving you enough!’ When I left the studio I felt really good about myself because it felt like a therapy session, and I thought I had it figured out—even though I eventually realized that wasn’t actually the problem at all.”
“Heavenly”
“I actually wrote this around three or four years ago, about my first ex-boyfriend. We went back and forth for a good few years and then suddenly, the last time round, I just didn’t want it anymore. It had gone on for so long and I was just exhausted. I made the decision I was over it. I went into the studio and I was like, ‘I’ve just done something that I never thought I’d have the strength to do. I’ve ended it and it just feels great. It feels really heavenly.’ It’s got this dark, moody, sexier feel to it and brings out a different side to me as an artist and a person.”
“Halfway”
“The light at the end of the tunnel of the EP. I think peace is the vibe it brings, when something comes to an end and you know that it’s going to be all right. I really wanted to show that the day will come when you wake up in the morning and think, ‘Oh, the anxiety’s gone,’ and you feel more uplifted.”
“Good Without”
“The song that really kicked it all off for me: a really sassy self-love song. It’s the ‘I know what I’m worth, I know what I deserve, and if you are not everything I need, I’m happy to be without’ track. It was the first song I wrote this year, and I think I knew it would be a game-changer for me. I was so inspired over Christmas, so going into the new year I had a big manifestation board and I really wanted to write a big smash that makes people feel powerful.”
“Lonely in Love”
“I think this song explains exactly why I did what I had to do and why I had to leave my relationship. If you are in love but you still feel lonely, it's like you are not getting every corner of the love that you deserve and want. You just feel so down. For so long I was like, ‘What is the problem?’ Even now I can’t put my finger on what it was. But it was like this gut instinct that I had, that this is just not right, and ‘Lonely in Love’ really represents that. It’s a tough song, emotionally; I think performing it live will be hard.”