Photo courtesy of Cate Belmont
For many members of Gen Z, jamming out in your childhood bedroom to “Here We Go Again” by Demi Lovato or “7 Things” by Miley Cyrus is a universal experience. Blasting your favorite pop rock anthems is always emotional, even when you’re eight years old and can’t relate to the lyrics. Singer-songwriter Cate Belmont is all too familiar with this formidable experience. So, she set out to make a pop rock anthem of her own.
In grade 7, Cate discovered her love for songwriting after finding out she has dyspraxia. She quickly discovered that writing songs became a way for her to develop her own sense of self and in turn allowed her to spill her feelings out, rather than bottle them up.
Her newest single “Make It Hurt” is no exception. “‘Make It Hurt’ is a pop rock anthem about knowing your self-worth but disregarding it for a crush. It’s what relishing in the thrill of self-sabotage sounds like,” Cate said. The inspiration for the song came from a confusing relationship. When Cate’s friends warned her of red flags, she didn’t know why she still had the desire to stick around. This eternal battle between head and heart is what she set out to explore in “Make It Hurt.”
Like most of Cate’s songs, “Make It Hurt” started out as a voice memo on her phone. After booking a session with a drummer and discussing with her co-producer, Nathan Chandra (Ox The Moron), who brought the electric guitar, the song pieced itself together quickly. However, unlike her previous releases, Cate describes “Make It Hurt” as having a live band feel, similar to the Demi Lovato and Miley Cyrus songs that she grew up with.
The video, referencing its playful lyrics with stop motion, doesn’t take itself too seriously. Specifically, it plays on the symbolism of cooking in a relationship and how it’s a reflection of how people care, or don’t care, for each other. The video’s writer and director, Kaitlin Gaspar, illustrated this through making soup. “Oftentimes in unbalanced relationships, one person is totally consumed by the other’s indifference,” Cate said. The video served as a way for Cate and Kaitlin to express themselves freely and entertain any idea they came up with as they went along.
Although “Here We Go Again” and “7 Things” might open some old wounds, “Make It Hurt” can heal them up. “I hope listeners find it cathartic and do some version of scream-cry-indulging. I had the best time working with such talented individuals who are also so warm and fun to be around. Hopefully that joy comes across,” Cate said.
Stream “Make It Hurt” and watch the video here
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