“Nice Knowing You” by Daisy Briggs

Newport, Rhode Island born Daisy Briggs has allowed her Northeastern upbringing present obstacles to Nashville success. She weaned her burgeoning passion for music on Taylor Swift and Sam Hunt songs while learning guitar and lingering around her mother’s haven for rescued animals. She’s ready now to translate a significant social media following into long-term fans with the pending release of her debut EP Nice Knowing You. The plain autobiographical connections of the collection’s title song never prevent her, however, from appealing to a wider audience. She writes in such a way that listeners young and old relate to her musical tales of thwarted love – it’s an universality certain to serve her well in the years to come.  

The song has an easy-going and affirmative vibe despite depicting the aftermath of a failed relationship. It isn’t portraying someone struggling to pick up the pieces. Briggs, instead, has moved on and the track testifies to the light now streaming through where darkness once dominated. She conveys that message through her lyrics and with the effortless lilt in her voice. Briggs does not have the sort of voice capable of blowing down a brick wall, but the song doesn’t require that. It asks her to communicate release, catharsis, and freedom. Her singing does that in an impressive fashion.  

The track’s video does as well. It treats viewers to some of the drama of a crumbling relationship with wordless but nonetheless well-acted interludes illustrating interpersonal strife. It also shows, however, Briggs surrounded by friends, communicating her emotional liberation in a loose-limbed and confident way, and her beauty glows throughout the clip. Director Jake Saghi deftly manages the video’s assortment of jump cuts and scenic locations with polish and a fair amount of flair.  

The lyrics are wisely never specific. The lack of concrete details means that listeners can apply the song’s meaning to a larger assortment of personal relationships rather than focusing on romantic entanglements exclusively. It has a distinctly conversational slant rather than trying to evoke the end of a relationship with quasi-poetic imagery. She is looking to relate, not obfuscate. It serves the musical arrangement well.   It has a perfect running time as well. Clocking in at a little less than three minutes, “Nice Knowing You” gets under your skin fast and doesn’t belabor its points. The instrumentation has a lean focus, and you will struggle to find even a single redundant or extraneous note present in the performance. It has a largely acoustic sound and interesting percussion that fuels it with a buoyant bounce.  

This is exactly the sort of song that Daisy Briggs needs to further jump-start her career. “Nice Knowing You” aims to enchant pop fans and music devotees alike. There is a lot of substance here, but it has a light touch. Lasting careers are built on the backs of songs such as this and there’s no reason to expect the remainder of her debut EP won’t live up to the immense promise we hear during this track.

Mindy McCall