Illusions of Eleanor is the title of the next chapter in the fantasy-Americana book of Shayna Barber (formerly Shayna Adler). About the change, Shayna simply says, “new name, old soul.”
The singer-songwriter embarked on a journey with 2020 concept Folk-Rock album “Wander,” which garnered international attention, with write-ups and interviews in American Songwriter, Americana UK, Vents Magazine, and Top-40 radio chart positions in multiple countries. Shayna ended 2023 with a somber, original holiday ballad, “The Last of the Snow,” which Last Day Deafdescribed as, “intimate acoustic folk ballad, adorned with sweet vocals and fragile melodies, captures the essence of a somber winter landscape where holidays are tinged with the ache of missing loved ones.”
Shayna opened 2024 with another acoustic-forward single, “Two Legs:” a former audience favorite at live performances. In response to the release of “Two Legs,” ParaPOP wrote, “Shayna Adler, with her talent for creating songs full of stories and adventure, succeeds in inviting listeners into the rich and imaginative world of her music."
The journey Shayna endured in the time post-Covid was not an easy one. With the sudden loss of an 8-year career in music and audio engineering in Los Angeles in the pandemic, she found herself wayward and on the road, living in multiple states for a couple of years. Shayna lost her mother to breast cancer in 2022, and her first child was born in 2023. The experiences of loss and birth in these past few years have sparked a change in the elements of her songwriting, and she’s been building a new world of music for her listeners. “It’s why I had to move forward under a different name in order to keep going,” she explains, “because I’m not the same person I was.”
Although Shayna’s songs usually live in the fiction world, her upcoming release “Who Would Love You Now” is a playful, rebellious anthem. A silent survivor of abusive relationships, Shayna stands back up from the ground in this song and dares, “hit me with your best shot;” with witty lyrics and a clear vision of the future where her life is her own. In “Who Would Love You Now,” this survivor is empowered, strong, and she hopes to inspire others to take back their self-worth. With the help of her husband and brother, Shayna filmed a music video on the outskirts of a frozen lake in Montana during the month of December. This setting was appropriately metaphoric for the song, as despite the wintery surroundings of dormant trees and icy shores, Shayna is lively and her usual self: a vibrant, kooky character. Illusion of Eleanor’s “Who Would Love You Now” will be available everywhere music is, August 30th 2024.