In Honest And Vulnerable EP, Securely Detached, Elif Dame Takes Back Her Life

On The Table Read Magazine, “the best entertainment magazine in the UK“, the new EP from Elif Dame, Securely Detached, showcases her learning to take back her own life.

Elif Dame

Amsterdam based Elif Dame (meaning she who brings light) was born to a jazz pianist and retail-clerk. After practicing her creativity from a young age, her musical interests were sparked by the likes of Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder and the gospel genre. Over time, her inspirations were expanded and shifted through the realms of countless genres, with her first songs written to beat tapes of MF DOOM, J Dilla and Madlib.

After experimenting with different sounds, Dame gradually allowed her sound to develop into an eclectic form of alternative R&B, through which she touches on topics such as her battles with depression and anxiety, insecure attachment and relationship issues, trauma, family drama and addiction.

Through 2020 and 2021, Dame released a slew of singles, but it soon became clear to her that her lifelong battle against depression, combined with the pressure to consistently put out new work, had taken away the joy she previously felt in creating music. After taking a long overdue self-care hiatus, Dame committed herself to prioritizing her own mental health – all while documenting the process.

Securely Detached

Elif Dame’s EP, Securely Detached, is a result of that hiatus, showcasing her journey of learning to take back her own life, differentiate her own feelings from the feelings of her surroundings and also about learning to focus on herself instead of pre-occupying her mind with making other people happy and comfortable.

It’s about reframing my co-dependent relationships and about my time on the waitlist to get mental health care. It’s about the important process of learning what it means to put yourself first.

-Elif Dame

The EP kicked off with the release of “Celexa (Buy Me Time)” where Dame opened up about hitting rock bottom and weighing up the options of going on medication. Followed by “Killing It” which specifically focuses on letting go and starting to feel the benefits of medication, all whilst having doubts about being on the precipice of another manic episode. 

In songs such as How To Self-Care and Self-Care Pt. II, Dame admits to not being able to fulfill her primary needs as a basic means of maintaining her stability and consequently facing a never ending cycle of healing and self-sabotage.

In Grandmothers Fault and Good Friend, she shares her struggles with the unhealthy relationships in her life, while in Nature Of The Beast, she speaks of a realization that addiction is a family disease. 

Title-track Securely Detached is a cheerful admission of her feelings.

This song is about trying to do better but accepting that it’s a journey, about lovingly detaching from others and accepting that through dedicated self-work, some things stay as they are and I’m alright with it.

-Elif Dame

With half a million streams for her debut single, Elif Dame is heading in the right direction, with Securely Detached set to take her to new heights, as she connects with listeners around the world with her beautifully honest and vulnerable music.

Find more from Elif Dame now:

https://www.instagram.com/elifdame/

https://www.tiktok.com/@elifdame

https://twitter.com/elifdame

https://www.facebook.com/elifdame

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