Agon Branza
Some People
Born in Lisbon but based in London, Agon Branza is a Producer and Singer-Songwriter with an impressive list of credits. He’s worked and shared the stage with artists like Katie Melua (one of my faves), Rick Astley, Orlando Weeks, Glen Scott and Jools Holland. As a producer his work has been featured on BBC Radio and Amazon Prime. He was also awarded a Cannes Silver Lion and a Best Soundtrack award for his TV advertising works. He’s one of the reasons why we love writing this blog. His writing and work are phenomenal. For all you artists out there worried about social media likes and follows, he’s a perfect one to study. Master your craft first, see where that takes you and the attention will come naturally. That’s what he’s done. Just watch - he’s going to blow up - and this song just might do it for him. Here’s our review of “Some People”.
Simple start for the track, key of C, subtle strings and light piano chords, driven by a plucked string around 62 BPM. Agon lays down a beautiful melody for the first verse underneath a Cmaj7 and Fmaj7 that floats above the progression like a feather. Effortless. Reminds me of Mozart’s “Serenade For Winds” (K 361, 3rd movement). You’ll need to go back and listen to it again to catch the lyrics because you’ll probably get lost in the beauty of the melody. He’s setting up a battle for the soul. Chorus starts on the 2-, and the melody he employs rises and falls effortlessly between his head and chest voice as he sings the heartbreaking words, “I’m sorry.” With the next phrase, he drops to the flat 7, then the 4, then a 6-, 5, 1 over the phrase “I can’t stay.” Beautiful chord progression coming off the 2-, not to mention the wide open space of the verse chords.
Second verse picks up the intensity just enough, keeping the focus on the lyrics and his tone. With the second chorus, we get the addition of percussion and an amplified mix that help drive home to point of the torture he’s enduring. At this point, we’re absolutely blown away by the writing and production. In many ways it reminds me of Josh Groban or Ben Platt and his incredible solo work, especially when the bridge takes off with his vocalizations and the crux of the story. For the ending, it’s a soft landing as he finds freedom and release from the trauma of ignorance and it ends on that same acoustic plucked pulse that started it all. Damn, that’s a good ride. You can tell he writes for sync - this is absolutely cinematic.
Lyrically, he states the song is about “stepping away from certain people and discussions in order to preserve my mental health.” In such a highly politicized and toxic era, it’s hard to find a more compelling text: “Some people sink their teeth in on anything, high moral grounds, ignorance and the Holy King. We fight those internalized tumorous beliefs, to then be struck down by your valiant mischiefs. And I can’t stay, I’m sorry I can’t stay.” Living in the midst of a very conservative state, I can relate to these lyrics - most people can. This is a universal message that needs to be shared, if nothing else than to try and bridge the gap between us all. There’s too much division caused by ignorance, and this is why music and the arts are more important than ever. Stunning.
Scroll down to catch his socials and links to other works. Glitter Guns is more avante-garde than this track, but if you dive into his socials you’ll find some stunning work. With a voice and style like his, we’ll be amazed if he’s not a household name soon.