Swedish artist Maydar’s new single FDRDT (Friends Don’t Really Do That) dropped with a music video made together with people from around the world.
Maydars’ (real name Alexandra Shanahan) soulful vocals recently featured on producer Slacking Beats single Seasalt, lifting it into the lofty heights of a Scandi soul classic.
And solo, producer, vocalist and DJ Maydar continues to impress. Her catalogue of releases includes a debut EP Fool Me Twice (2109) (listen out for Sweet Talk) and singles such as Rinse and Repeat and the unmissable Taxi.

The title of her latest release FDRDT is an abbreviation for ‘Friends Don’t Really Do That‘ and told through an R&B / Pop blended production.
The song examines being in love with a close friend, but being too scared to admit your true feelings and intentions in fear of losing the person you hold so dearly.
Maydar explained;
“I mean, if you’re repeatedly finding yourself sharing intimate moments – are you really ‘just’ friends? Most likely not. But it’s still hard to admit that you want more and easier to laugh it off as a drunken mistake. But I’ve learned the hard way that being dishonest with how you feel towards another person can create a destructive distance. A distance that’s hard to recover from.”
With a bizarre coincidence, the word ‘distance’ would take a different meaning, just a few months later. Enforced restrictions on human closeness gave the song a whole new sense.
For the video, Maydar decided to enquire if people were willing to share clips of what they’re up to during this global pandemic. The response was immediate and people from 16 different countries sent in a varied array of content. From people filming themselves while self-isolating, connecting with family and loved ones over distance to people trying to maintain a somewhat normal state of living.
“It’s been a really cool way to connect and create something over distance with people who listen to my music. And it’s been so moving to go through all the clips from peoples actual lives.”
Musicians and artists such as Maydar continue to unite us through their art, creative minds and voices.
It’s a heartening reminder that we’re all in this together.