back to friends

Sombr (real name: Shane Boose) was 19 when he released his breakthrough song "Back to Friends," where he poses a question many have asked after a romantic encounter with a supposedly former love: "How can we go back to being friends when we just shared a bed?" He told iHeartRadio the song was "written about when the lines become blurred between lovers and friends, and having to navigate going back to friends after sharing such intimate moments with someone."

The inspiration, as is often the case with heartbreak anthems, comes from personal experience, a "really dark point" in his life. For Sombr, emotional turmoil is something of a creative goldmine, but it means he has to revisit the pain every time he performs the song. "Every night when I play it, I relive everything I was feeling that night when I wrote it," he told MTV. "All the emotions come back."

Sombr produced the track, which leans into an indie-rock sound. He also pulled a multi-instrumentalist flex by handling bass, drums, keyboards, and piano. The other musicians are: Benny Bock: keyboards and piano Kane Ritchotte: drums Mason Stoops: guitar