- 2025-08-31
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MUSIC
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MARIS Releases New Song “IT'S HARD (to be a Man)”
Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter MARIS released a new song “IT'S HARD (to be a Man)” on August 29, 2025.
The song is the follow-up to “Mary + I”, which was released back in May.
As the single, it follows the corroborative song Girls Just Wanna Be Famous(er) with Meg Smith and Molly Grace, which was released earlier this month.
The track was inspired by her brief and unexpected experience as a digital sex worker. A sharp, guitar-driven track that blends biting humor with raw honesty.
It was written by co-written and co-produced by Maris Ward and Dylan Bauld.
The accompanying music video was directed by Grace Stromatt.
MARIS said of the song, “‘IT’S HARD (to be a Man)’ is a song that saved me from the heaviness I was feeling during my brief stint as a sex worker, with humor and sarcasm.”- She continued, “I went into the session with Dylan Bauld feeling so lost, because I was working this job where I pretended to be a roster of OnlyFans models, and I was messaging men and selling their nudes for tips. The things men would say to me, and the mental rabbit hole I would go down thinking through what these men were Googling, how they interact with women on and offline, and how they even conceptualize women, really shook me to my core. I was so heavy going into the session, and I told Dylan I needed to make a song about it, but it just couldn’t be sad. It had to be funny, because that’s the only way I could cope with it.”
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She added, “We referenced ‘Soul Bossa Nova’ by Quincy Jones, and Dylan added all his classic rock guitars to create this surreal sonic world that feels cheeky yet hardcore. I went outside, smoked a J, and started writing from the perspective of these guys. The chorus came to me via what I was typing multiple times every shift, ‘oh my God, it’s soooooo hard’ and I realized how prevalent this power dynamic is now. Women have men in the palm of their hands, and they don’t even have to touch them. The virtual sex industry is billions of dollars big, and every day we stray further from nature’s light. It’s hard.”
Photo by Smiles Meyer - source : Apple Music
