Perfect pitch! Hailee Steinfeld made her debut as a bona fide recording artist on Friday, Aug. 7, releasing her first solo studio single.
The former child star, now 18, dropped “Love Myself” on Friday morning, making her official entry to the radio charts after previously lending her vocals to film projects. Steinfeld sang on the soundtrack to Begin Again with Keira Knightley in 2014 and earned multiple credits on the Pitch Perfect 2 soundtrack after playing freshman a cappella hopeful Emily Junk.
The True Grit actress stuns in the artwork for the track, posing against a simple background in a slinky black top. She continues to impress with her vocal chops as she croons about independence and confidence against a pop beat.
“Hey / Gonna love myself, no, I don’t need anybody else,” Steinfeld sings. “I love me / Can’t help myself, no, I don’t need anybody else / Anytime, day or night / I love me.”
The pop single serves as an introduction to the starlet’s upcoming debut studio album. She’s been holed up in a recording studio as of late, though she’s taken breaks from music-making to cameo in BFF Taylor Swift‘s “Bad Blood” music video and continue her acting career.
“It’s been a crazy last six months,” Steinfeld said in an interview with Elvis Duran on Z100’s Morning Show on Friday. “I’ve been working nonstop in the studio and I think I will have more music at the end of the year, early next year.”
While Steinfeld started acting at a young age, earning an Oscar nomination for True Grit at just 14 years old, she has slowly added music to her resume in recent months.
“Honestly, music has always been such a huge part of my life and always a part of my plan,” she told Duran. “Making music has always been something I wanted to do, it’s really only been a matter of when. I made Pitch Perfect 2 last year, and after that I kind of just fell into making this. It all happened very organically, and it’s been amazing! I’ve made time and I’ve fallen in love with the whole process.”
Take a listen to “Love Myself” above and keep an eye out for new music from Steinfeld in the coming months!
