Jack River Releases New Single & Announces Time Off Music To Welcome First Child

Jack River, AKA Holly Rankin, has returned with a brand-new single, Nothing Has Changed, released with the I OH YOU record label.

The song incorporates guitars, pounding drums, River's commanding voice, and a dreamy '90s feel that faces the duality of fearing the unknown and feeling excited about its potential.

River said about the track, "I wrote Nothing Has Changed after playing my first show back after the pandemic at Bass in the Grass, in Darwin. I was scared that everything might have changed, but when I returned, everything was in its place; we were all there - screaming and yelling and singing together, just like we used to, and just like we will for years to come."

Nothing Has Changed was co-written and produced by Joel Quartermain (G Flip, Client Liaison, Merci, Mercy) and Edwin White (Vance Joy, Amy Shark). The track follows River's recent single, Real Life, which became triple j's most-played song upon release.

River has also shared a letter with her fans to explain why she'll take a break from music and social media over the next couple of months: she's pregnant! 

"The past year has been a whirlwind of change," she begins, before getting into the challenges of being a touring musician during a pandemic.

"Coming back from two years off the road, and playing shows around the country twice or three times over has been incredibly wonderful and humbling. I have loved travelling far and wide to find you and share unforgettable micro-moments of elation and joy after such real isolation.

"This year hasn’t been without challenges for the band and I, and pretty much every artist I know. We have had countless festivals, and shows cancel due to weather and the hangover of COVID, but still, we hang on and push forward - I am so proud of the team I have and the grit of my industry as we continue to face a complete reimagining of business as usual."

River has also been recording her second album. "Across 2021 and 2022, I recorded my sophomore album, which I’ll be giving to you next year. With everything going on in the world politically and socially, I once again turned to writing and production to escape and to process. I’ll tell you more about it in the new year, but all I can say right now is that I got to work with some of my musical heroes, and we have made something that I hope will give you the keys to holiday houses in your mind, places to go and pathways to run through, as the planet quietly changes forever.

"Escaping, or taking time away from the goings on of this place, is a fine art form that I’m ever envious of and ever trying to create in my music. But in real life, I haven’t given myself rest and real escape in a very long time. I also haven't made the time for friends and family that I want to; I haven't had enough moments of nothingness and ‘in between’ that make for the perfect song and dream fuel.

"But this year I fell pregnant, and my body has physically taught me that rest is non-negotiable to grow life," River explains. She adds, "Pregnancy has also gifted me with a closeness and honesty in my friendships and relationships that I haven't experienced before - especially with mothers and birth workers - who suddenly hand you the keys to this whole other level of reality that previous you couldn't have foreseen. All in all, the journey of pregnancy and the anticipation of motherhood has given me a mandate to slow down for the summer and into real life, whatever that is about to be.

"So, I’m taking a couple months off socials and this world to sink deep into the summer and make another world of my own, a world just for me and my family and my dog. One that can't be streamed or liked or shared."

Congratulations to Jack River! 

Check out Nothing Has Changed below.