It is rare that I hear about an artist making a song that spreads awareness on teen suicide, so it is always interesting to see their take on increasing awareness to audiences. 

“I tried to convey a message of hope through the recognition of sadness,” Sak said. “I feel that if I can express my emotions through a song, in a way, I’ve conquered the emotion.”

Singer/songwriter Ethan Sak has been passionate about music since he was five years old. He signed his first publishing deal with NoiseBlock Studios when he was about 13. After releasing his first original single the rising music star has reached the top 40 on an official Billboard music chart, began his first national tour, and broke 500,000 streams on Spotify.

Sak has also started his own indie record label called The Color of Music where he released “Live Another Day” and his upcoming EP. 

Last February the students in the Starr’s Mill fine arts department were able to hear Sak’s talent, listen to the journey he has had in his music career, and ask questions about what they should do to succeed in this field.

The inspiration for “Live Another Day” came to Ethan Sak when he was told that one of his friends tried to commit suicide. The person did not go through with it because of a phone call that occurred between a friend they share. When writing the song and helping to produce the music video, Sak set out to not only illustrate his emotions through the situation but also spread awareness on this subject to help others with similar situations. 

In this adult contemporary/pop piano ballad Sak does a great job in showing the pain someone may go through with his lyrics and voice. 

His voice has a raspy, almost scratchy, kind of sound throughout the song, and at one point his voice breaks. This really stuck with me emotionally after the song, bringing me on the verge of tears. 

This song has meaning in everything even down to its title. Sak uses it in the line “she was too far gone to live another day,” which was not how it expected him to incorporate the title, but this way makes a larger impact since this is the last line in the song.

The thing I love the most about this music video is that it tells a story without the volume on.

It shows the events that lead to a girl who chooses to commit suicide after being ignored when trying to talk with her friends, and how the people that were supposedly close to her deal with the grief. Sak hopes that any listener who relates knows there are people that care about them and that they are not alone. He also hopes that this song helps listeners identify “a cry for help” and save the life of someone in need.

This music video depicts the lyrics and emotions of this song very well, especially the ending shot. The way the main character was lying on her bed after swallowing a bottle of pills and the screen going dark until it fades to the suicide prevention line. 

Through Sak’s ability to create a song where the lyrics are powerful and the message is clear, he is able to convey how he captivates his audience while pushing forth information that is needed. From this phenomenal track, the main message Sak wants his audience to take away is the same as the title “Just Live Another Day!”