Love at first sight can quickly turn into frustration and impatience when you don’t get that call back from your crush.
Shane Malone, a Jacksonville native and 20-year-old UF computer science junior, reckons with that feeling. His March 4 single, “Waiting” released via Havěa Records comes over seven months after his release “Split in Two.” Malone marches forward in the duet with Hannah Stomski or Sprig, a singer-songwriter out of Wilmington, North Carolina.
Malone and Sprig received help from Malone’s long-time collaborator Taylor Neal, who mixed the track, and Netherlands-based owner of Da Goose Mastering and audio engineer Jeffery de Gans, who mastered the track.
“This song is crazy, this song is amazing,” Malone said.
With over 840,000 likes on Tiktok, over 7,750 Spotify listeners and a top three spot on Spotify’s “Fresh Finds Indie” playlist with his new song “Waiting” as of March 10, Shane Malone’s stock has risen exponentially in the past year.
The duet plays like a split-screen scene in your favorite rom-com movie — the wandering gaze of two separated romantic interests is embodied in the gripping lyrics of the track. Driven by a warm wave of swimming guitar riffs and an arcade-like punchy snare, the song emotes the nostalgic feeling of pursuing a love interest while juggling a fast-paced life with adult responsibilities.
The chorus refrain, “I’m tired of waiting,” serves as a battle cry for taking charge of one’s life and dumping all feelings of complacency out the window.
Reminiscent of R&B female singer group SWV’s and Brian Alexander Morgan “You’re Always on My Mind,” the artists showcase what crushing on someone looks like in the modern age — namely through stalking your crush’s Instagram posts and Snapchat stories.
A collaboration in the works since 2021, Malone and Sprig found their way to each other by the power of the internet during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Malone caught wind of Sprig through a long line of mutual connections that led to his discovery of Sprig’s music. After discovering Sprig’s songs like “Outside,” one of Malone’s favorites, he was quick to show support to a fellow indie artist through social media.
Malone and Sprig both envisioned “Waiting” as an ode to their experiences in past interpersonal relationships. Malone provided the lush production of the track while Sprig drove the lyrical content.
“She has a very unique voice and unique phrasing,” Malone said. “She can say the simplest of things and it still sounds magical.”
With an overarching theme of a young adult’s plight navigating through life, Sprig used the song as a stream of consciousness to expand on her life experiences.
“You’re putting the ball in someone else’s court,” Sprig said “You know how you feel but you’re waiting on someone else to give you that validation. At 26 I’m learning how to just be like ‘I’m not waiting on anybody.’”
Malone’s humble beginnings started in middle school where his musically inclined grandfather encouraged him to take band class. It was there where he joined his school’s jazz band and became a multi-instrumentalist in his down time; he played bass guitar, saxophone and electronic drums. Eventually, he recorded his own songs on GarageBand and released them on SoundCloud.
As a college student, Shane has been able to balance music and academics despite many obstacles in his life. Having to work while trying to make room for what he loves put a strain on his music goals last semester.
“I was just kind of generally unhappy in my life,” said Shane.
Malone’s insight on being split between two life paths is still a balancing act since the release of his last single. After landing a summer job in Silicon Valley at Google and a deal with an international record label, the success at both ends is of the same, heavy-weight stature.
“It’s a lot higher stakes for both now,“ Malone said. “I feel like I’m in a much better place.”
Malone has been committed to taking his music more seriously since the summer of 2020, where he focused more on the production quality of his music.
Malone sought fellow Florida artist and Havěa Records signee url (pronounced Earl), a dream pop artist, as a mentor after witnessing his success on Spotify. Url’s roughly 300 listeners at the time were a motivator for Malone. He formed a friendship with the artist that eventually led Shane to sign a deal with Phil Landmann, the founder of Havěa Records.
“It just felt really good to have someone else in my corner,” Malone said.
Shane has also expanded beyond recording music and has performed live at popular local music venues like the Heartwood Soundstage and the High Dive, with new performances yet to be announced.
Moving forward, Shane is working on new music with potential plans of working with Sprig in the future.
Follow Dazion on Twitter @DazionProsser.
