Stream: LACES, ‘Almost Happy’ (feat. Butch Walker)

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LACES (Photo by Shari Hoffman)

Jessica Vaughn (née Poland) debuted her LACES pop persona back in 2015 as she started a new chapter after her life as Charlotte Sometimes. Ever since, the project has been a source of dark, compelling confessional pop, released sporadically around her other endeavors, which are many.

She also releases music under the moniker JPOLND, is a busy collaborator with other artists and has placed myriad songs in TV shows and commercials. She’s VP of Sync & Creative at the publishing company Heavy Hitters Music in addition to running her own label, Head Bitch Music.

Two recent releases suggest she’s placing more emphasis on LACES. First, in late March, she released the “Breaking My Heart,” with a music video starring Jessy Shram (“Once Upon a Time,” “Chicago Med”). Now there is “Almost Happy,” which features all-around talent Butch Walker — who took the then-teenaged Charlotte Sometimes on tour way back in the day.

“Butch took me on my first tour,” Vaughn says. “I was 19 and petrified! He was always supportive, kind, and a total rock star. It’s emotional thinking about where and who I was then and where and who I am now. To have Butch share this song with me in this stage of my life is a full-circle moment.”

Walker contributes what Vaughn calls “the best ’90s guitar solo ever” to the new single, which is an homage to that era. “‘Almost Happy’ feels like my honest truth,” she says. “To me, happiness has never been a destination, I only ever wanted to be content and OK. It’s a conversation that discusses where I’ve been, where I am and where I’m going. It’s laced with sarcasm and self-deprecating humor, while also standing firm in belief and self-love.

“Life is complicated and I’m happy to be almost happy.”

The last she was truly happy? It was indeed the ’90s, and she’s made a playlist of her influences to stoke nostalgia for the era. “My life has been a series of extreme highs and lows, and the last time I can remember being actually happy was in the ’90s,” Vaughn says. “When I still had the ability to be present and live an analog life. Take me back to ’96 and my VCR please and thank you.”

||| Stream: “Almost Happy”

||| Also: Watch the video for “Breaking My Heart”