Abby Roberts’ new single “Imposter Syndrome” gets directly to the heart of the anxiety many young people feel today. 

The song, released on Aug. 25, is the ninth song Roberts has released. It’sabout mental health and the way people’s desire to fit in or be noticed conflicts with their desire to be respected. Defined by the National Institutes of Health, imposter syndrome is “a behavioral health phenomenon described as self-doubt of intellect, skills, or accomplishments among high-achieving individuals,” but what the song describes is closer to victims of bullying and harassment feeling conflicted about the attention they receive. 

The pre-chorus lyrics say: “And now I feel it kicking in/Feel my heartbeat sinking through my skin/I got a new fix that I’ll never quit/I wanna be liked, but l’Il never admit.” This comes immediately after the first verse describes a group of people who “stripped me out my clothes, put me on display/Then they’re laughing at the parts I was hiding.”  

Roberts’ anxiety is personified, as she describes hoping that it will “just fade away,” expressing that she can’t break the cycle she’s currently in. 

The vocals, which emphasize beats one and three in each measure, contrast the heavy drum beats on beats three and four, creating a rhythmic dissonance that is jarring to the ear at first. The ear adjusts to this discordas the song plays, the same way that Roberts has settled into the cycle that her mental health has created.  

The reverberation in the instrumentals furthers this dissonance and creates an almost eerie feeling that settles into feeling comfortable by the end in the same way many young people experience anxiety today. 

“Imposter Syndrome” creates a feeling of empathy towards those struggling with mental health issues in a unique way, not only by telling Roberts’ story but recreating the feelings her story elicits.