"Honestly" is a song recorded by American Internet personality and singer Gabbie Hanna. It was independently released for digital download on August 15, 2018 simultaneously with its

encore An encore is an additional performance given by performers after the planned show has ended, usually in response to extended applause from the audience.Lalange Cochrane, in ''Oxford Companion to Music'', Alison Latham, ed., Oxford University Pres ...

titled "Honestly (Encore)". Both tracks were written by Hanna and

Lyre The lyre () is a stringed musical instrument that is classified by Hornbostel–Sachs as a member of the lute-family of instruments. In organology, a lyre is considered a yoke lute, since it is a lute in which the strings are attached to a yoke ...

, while production was solely handled by the latter. The inspiration for their lyrics derives from a relationship the singer had had with a pathological liar. Musically, "Honestly" has been described as a

pop punk Pop punk (or punk pop) is a rock music genre that combines elements of punk rock with power pop or pop. It is defined for its emphasis on classic pop songcraft, as well as adolescent and anti-suburbia themes, and is distinguished from other pu ...

song in which Hanna belts about

empowerment Empowerment is the degree of autonomy and self-determination in people and in communities. This enables them to represent their interests in a responsible and self-determined way, acting on their own authority. It is the process of becoming strong ...

. A

music critic ''The Oxford Companion to Music'' defines music criticism as "the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres". In this sense, it is a branch of mus ...

noted an "ominous and aggressive vibe". A double music video for "Honestly" and "Honestly (Encore)" was uploaded onto Hanna's

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

channel on the same day of the songs' digital release and was directed by Ryan Parma. It features her performing choreography, and eventually she is shown tied up to a rack by white cloths and struggling to get away from two men. Reviewers praised the clip, with one comparing Hanna's dancing to that of

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

. Commercially, "Honestly" entered the download charts in Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States, and peaked at number 21 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (also known as Bubbling Under the Hot 100) is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. The chart lists the top songs that have not yet charted on the main ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Chart ...

chart as well as at number 61 in Scotland. In the same territory, "Honestly (Encore)" peaked at number 86. For further promotion, Hanna delivered a live performance of "Honestly" at VidCon 2018 in Australia.

Background and composition

"Honestly" was independently released for digital download on August 15, 2018 simultaneously with its

titled "Honestly (Encore)". Both were written by Hanna and

, while production was solely handled by the latter. ''Note: Open description for credits.'' In a Carpool Karaoke video on

with

Ricky Dillon Richard Porter Dillon Jr. is an American YouTube personality and singer. Over his ten years on YouTube, Dillon has amassed over 3.2 million subscribers on his channel, as well as more than 415 million views on his videos. Early life and e ...

, Hanna revealed that initially "Honestly" featured drastically different lyrics. The songs were inspired by a pathological liar the singer had dated; she detailed the relationship in a series of videos she posted on YouTube in July 2018. She further wrote on her

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

: "'Honestly' and 'Honestly (Encore)' are songs for anyone who's ever been manipulated, lied to, gaslighted, or made to feel like they were crazy. Anyone ever associated with a narcissist." "Honestly" is a

song, in which Hanna also touches on

topics. According to Geoff Weiss of Tubefilter, "Honestly" and "Honestly (Encore)" show an "ominous and aggressive vibe". Lyrics from the first verse of "Honestly" include: "Your words don't hold any weight, I can't seem to get a straight answer. Don't trust you, but who's to blame?" In the pre-chorus, Hanna sings: "Got me second guessin' everything you say, Thinkin' that I know you, but you're really a stranger. Doin' what you gotta do to get your way. You're reckless and selfish and you can't help it". She continues belting in the

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in poetry — the "chorus" of a song. Poetic fixed forms that feature refrains include the vi ...

: "Say you're talkin' to me honestly, but you're lyin' to me constantly". In the

bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...

, Hanna asserts that she " oesn'tknow what's reality".

Commercial performance

Upon its release, both "Honestly" and "Honestly (Encore)" achieved success on digital platforms. "Honestly" peaked on ''

'' US

chart at number 21, although only released in the sixth day of the respective sales and

streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...

tracking period. The song further peaked at number ten on the country's

Digital Songs The Digital Songs or Digital Song Sales chart (previously named Hot Digital Songs) ranks the best-selling digital songs in the United States, as compiled by Nielsen SoundScan and published by '' Billboard'' magazine. Although it originally sta ...

chart with 16,000 copies sold, and reached number 61 in Scotland, number 24 on Canada's Hot Digital Song Sales chart, and number 81 on the British downloads ranking. In addition, "Honestly (Encore)" peaked at number 86 in Scotland.

Promotion

A double music video for "Honestly" and "Honestly (Encore)" was uploaded onto Hanna's YouTube channel on August 15, 2018, lasting around five minutes. It was directed and edited by Ryan Parma. During the first half of the visual, Hanna is shown sporting a black outfit, performing choreography done by Megan Batoon in front of a wall or flashing lights. During a scene, the singer is dancing around a black chair until kicking it away. Towards the end, she is shown with two other females—Helene Britany and Julia Oste—after the video cuts to her tied up, foreshadowing the second half of the video. During the video's second half, Hanna sports deranged-looking eye makeup and is tied up to a rack by white cloths. She struggles to get away from two men—Dalton Shooks and Jake Brandorff—who are constantly seen touching her. According to Dana Getz of

PopCrush Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...

, this aesthetic represents the singer being lost in a "web of lies". Matt Gehring of

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

praised the clip's concept and said that it was "executed with perfection". Emy LaCroix of ''

Life & Style ''Life & Style'' is an American syndicated talk show that was geared toward young adult females. It was produced and distributed by Sony Pictures Television and lasted only one season, from September 2004 to March 2005. It is unrelated to the cel ...

'' echoed Gehring's thought and labelled Hanna's dancing as "

-esque". For further promotion of "Honestly", Hanna performed it live at VidCon 2018 in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

, Australia.

Track listing

*"Honestly" #"Honestly" – 2:56 *"Honestly (Encore)" #"Honestly (Encore)" – 1:35

Charts

"Honestly"

"Honestly (Encore)"

Release history

External links

Official lyrics video
on YouTube

References

{{authority control 2018 singles 2018 songs Gabbie Hanna songs American pop punk songs