Benni stares off into the distance and walks along a beach in the late afternoon and evening in shifting images throughout the video for “September 20” (directed by Charline Albert). A spare and expansive piano line accompanies Benni’s regretful vocals creating a vulnerable setting for the song. Benni stretches out into a range of feelings in her performance as she outlines how she’s sorry for having hurt someone close to her in a way that seems unforgivable yet she seems to feel compelled to be open about the ways in which she has caused emotional harm and in the video we see some of these words written on sheets that Benni gathers up like the scraps of the relationship and tries to reassemble them on the sand and lays upon them when they are laid out, thus living in those words, owning her actions and the need to be truthful about her misdeeds in a way that feels powerfully sincere especially as the music ascends in a sweeping climax before dissolving to the end with an image of Benni burning her words at dusk. Sometimes you just have to say you’re sorry not expecting it’s going to fix anything or for a storybook reconciliation.The song centers Benni’s heartfelt vocals and it’s almost easy to miss the orchestral vistas of the rest of the music but it all measures up to a vivid and compelling apology for not being a better person with the implicit expression of a desire to do better. Watch the video for “September 20” on YouTube and follow Benni at the links below. Look for her debut EP in 2024.
Queen City Sounds and Art 
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