Some songs move you. I mean really move you. They tug at the hidden, often locked away heartstrings and touch those most sensitive of feelings.
The debut single from Danish artist Donita Rose – Please Don’t Leave Me, is such a song.
Aged just 18 years old, her debut single” Please Don’t Leave Me” is about love slipping away and the fear of losing the one you love. It is a ballad of heartbreaking impending loneliness, every note and word disarm with vulnerability, honesty, and authenticity. A feeling sadly most people have experienced and can relate to.
The vulnerability in her voice comes from a lived experience.
Donita Rose was born in Denmark and grew up there, but her roots are in the Philippines. When she was just 11 months old, she was forcibly removed from her biological mother and have had a childhood full of neglect. When she was three years old, she was placed in a foster family, where she lived until the age of 10. After this, Donita was passed on to an assisted living facility called Spanager.
About this time, Donita Rose says:
“This is the best thing that ever happened to me in the 18 years I have lived. Spanager helped me through a lot of things and have always been there for me, through all of my ups and downs.”
Unfortunately, Spanager closed down, and aged 16, Donita Rose was forced to move into a flat and take care of herself. Her high school life had started, and she was on her own, with only a little help from the council. She attended a youth club called Klub Midt Arena in her spare time, where she recorded covers with music teacher Martin Larsen.
It was also here that she met producer Jonas Rendbo at the Youth Music Studio, where he taught.
Donita Rose and Jonas recorded the song “Please Don’t Leave Me” on the first day they met in less than two hours!
We don’t often think about how many ‘takes’ songs are recorded nowadays. So much of today’s music is tweaked, filtered and tuned to perfection; however, the rawness of the outpouring of Donita Rose’s heart captures a truth. Keeping the electronic arrangement to a minimum, Donita’s emotive vocal dynamics are given space to cascade and flow unhindered and kept her moving story in the forefront.
One way or another, fate has lead Donita Rose to her new home. The home of making music and revealed her power to move the world to tears.