Maya De Vitry, 'How Bad I Wanna Live'

Pennsylvania-raised and Tennessee-based, Maya de Vitry first appeared on the folk scene in 2012 as a founding member of The Stray Birds.Laura Partain

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January 25, 2022

In 2022, one of the ultimate acts of resistance is simply embracing our existence. That realization came after listening to Maya De Vitry's "How Bad I Wanna Live," from her third solo album, Violet Light. Maya takes the experience of her own harrowing hike on a washed-out trail abutting a severe cliffside and turns it into an anthem for continuation.

In just under three minutes of mid-tempo Americana — that seemingly could have sprung from the songbook of Richard & Linda Thompson in their heyday — De Vitry fends off mortality wielding nothing more than generosity, spirit and the soaring harmony she sings with Shelby Means and Joel Timmons of Sally & George. Whether you have been in danger of leaving the earth suddenly, like De Vitry was, or have like so many simply been cracking under the strain of recent events, this song is the perfect soundtrack for uncorking that emotion and (defiantly) loving life again.