Dylan Connor Releases New Single – Hot Mess.
Singer-songwriter Dylan Connor has released his new single “Hot Mess,” a punchy, straight-ahead rock track driven by sharp, self-aware lyrics and restless energy. The song serves as the lead single from Connor’s forthcoming album Lest We Forget, set for release on January 30. Drawing inspiration from bands like The Cult, XTC, and R.E.M., “Hot Mess” balances classic rock urgency with a modern lyrical bite.
Lyrically, “Hot Mess” explores the tension between confidence and insecurity with humor and clarity. Connor contrasts an almost mythic figure — described as “a living goddess in a diamond-studded dress” — with a narrator unraveling in real time, repeating the refrain “I’m a hot mess / can barely get myself dressed.” The song captures modern restlessness and comparison culture, nodding to digital fatigue and compulsion with lines like “my fingers start to scroll / swiping always takes a toll.”
One of the track’s strongest hooks is its shimmering guitar work, played by producer and multi-instrumentalist Merritt Jacob. He opens the song with a catchy, immediate riff that establishes momentum from the outset, then returns throughout the choruses with a call-and-response interplay against the lead vocals. The result adds lift, texture, and memorability without overcomplicating the arrangement.
Rhythmically, the track is propelled by drums engineered and performed by Coley O’Toole, a multi-instrumentalist and member of the platinum-selling band We The Kings, who also toured with Green Day in the summer of 2024. O’Toole’s performance provides a tight, forward-driving backbone that keeps the song urgent and unfiltered.
Since its release, “Hot Mess” has landed on several Spotify playlists, helping build momentum ahead of Lest We Forget— an 11-track album that moves between darker, edgy guitar work, clean and sparkling textures, and stark, piano-driven moments.
Connor first gained widespread attention with his humanitarian anthem “If Only You’d Listen,” which went viral with over 9 million Facebook views. His music has appeared in films including Adverse and the Oscar-contending documentary Little Gandhi, as well as across networks such as MTV and Discovery.
With Lest We Forget arriving January 30, Dylan Connor continues to embrace an unapologetically human approach — capturing vulnerability, urgency, and self-awareness in equal measure.
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