Lewis Capaldi Ends Two Year Break With Emotional Ballad ‘Survive’

Lewis Capaldi has made a triumphant return to music, two years after an emotional moment at Glastonbury led to the singer taking a break from his career.

“Survive” is Capaldi’s first new song in nearly two years and was co-written with RØMANS, who also co-wrote his megahit “Someone You Loved.” It’s an empowering, emotional ballad addressing Capaldi’s mental health struggles in the wake of his battle with Tourette’s syndrome. “Most nights I fear that I’m not enough/I’ve had my share of Monday mornings when I can’t get up,” he sings on the tune. During the chorus he belts out: “I swear to God I’ll survive, if it kills me to/I’m gonna get up and try, if
it’s the last thing I’ll do.”

Capaldi has been slowly testing the waters of a comeback, performing a run of warm-up shows in Scotland as a guest of Tom Walker’s charity Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM). “I know how much pressure this industry can put on artists at times, especially after a bit of a break. So for him to be able to play a little secret gig in a safe space without all the phones, the noise and the expectations was perfect,” Walker said.

During his set at Glastonbury, Capaldi’s Tourette’s caused uncontrollable twitches while he performed “Someone You Loved,” leading the audience to take over the remainder of the song for him. Shortly after the performance, he let his fans know that he would be taking a break for the foreseeable future to focus on his mental and physical health.

“I used to be able to enjoy every second of shows like this and I’d hoped three weeks away would sort me out,” he wrote at the time. “But the truth is I’m still learning to adjust to the impact of my Tourette’s.”

Ahead of his break, Capaldi had starred in the Netflix documentary Lewis Capaldi: How I’m Feeling Now. He released his sophomore album Broken By Desire to Be Heavenly Sent in May of that year as well. His most recent single was “Strangers,” which appeared on the deluxe edition of the album in January 2024. Capaldi has not yet revealed if he has more new music or plans to perform live this summer.