“Whatever it takes I’ll do,” sings Jill Ryan on their new single. The mantra, once Ryan’s façade, is now their strength to come out, to “be myself,” to be “trusted.” We know Ryan here at XPN as the front person from the Philly-local band Great Time, who played XPoNential Festival in 2021, and a contributor to other acts we love such as Japanese Breakfast, Miya Folick, Mannequin Pussy, Sweet Pill, Kristine Leschper, and more. Now, Ryan is finding their voice as a solo artist and starting fresh in Los Angeles.
In the delightfully poppy “Whatever It Takes,” Ryan exhibits all the talent we recognized in Great Time — like a precise vision for production, expertise in multiple instruments, and unshakeable songwriting abilities — but with a new personal spin. “I used to tell myself I’d do whatever it took to fit into the role I was socialized into,” said Ryan referring to years of masking their queer identity. “For anyone feeling foreign in their own life, exhausted from living for others, and desperate to reconnect with the parts of themselves they’ve looked away from — I hope you can listen to this and feel held, hopeful and encouraged to meet all of your selves again.” In the making of this song, Ryan cited influences such as Caroline Polacheck, NNAMDÏ, FKA Twigs, and Little Dragon, which makes perfect sense to this writer.
Listen to “Whatever It Takes” below, and follow Jill Ryan on Instagram to keep up with their career in LA.