Josaleigh Pollett’s latest single “Radio Player” comes just in time for Halloween, steeped in spectral nostalgia and sonic unease. Josaleigh describes the track as “a journey through the hallways of childhood that we leave a light on within,” drawing inspiration from their childhood experience of watching Poltergeist, while weaving in themes of memory and loss.
Josaleigh Pollett produced “Radio Player” alongside longtime collaborator Jordan Watko (of Crowd Shy). This single is their first release together since Watko’s relocation from Salt Lake City (where Josaleigh currently resides) to Japan, and since 2023’s collaborative album In the Garden, By the Weeds. The duo are embracing the distance between them, working between their two home studios on opposite sides of the globe, and channeling the chaos of managing an international relationship into their music. In addition, Nashville-based Andrew Goldring contributed to production and several live instruments on the track; he’s now a member of Josaleigh Pollett’s live band.
The song’s intro crackles with an experimental soundscape, emulating the sound of a television. From there, “Radio Player” unfolds slowly, with deliberate electronic swells and textures, and an outro that shakes you before releasing you from its immersive grip. Josaleigh’s strong vocals carry a subtle edge, like a whispered warning to anyone who watches horror films too late at night. That disorientation upon waking, the blurred line between reality and a dream-state, is mirrored in the lyrics: “When I fell asleep it was dark, now a light is coming from the TV.” We’ve all been there: waking up on the couch in the witching hours, bathed in flickering light and weird shadows, unsure for a moment what day it is or even where you are. That liminal space is what Josaleigh Pollett and their collaborators conjure so well on this track.
The closing line “I told you that I saw a ghost, I just need you to believe me,” crystallizes this yearning for validation and connection amid the confusion. This is where Josaleigh Pollett cleverly takes a barely-remembered experience from a couple of decades ago to still be relevant in their adult life, proving that the echoes of childhood fears never truly fade, they simply evolve. “Radio Player” becomes a statement to how formative experiences can shape us as we age.
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