“For Real” Asks A Simple Question: What If We Listened To Each Other Again?

Most cultural commentary about life online arrives with a raised voice. “For Real,” the new collaboration from Eric Hirshberg and Aloe Blacc, chooses a different register. The song and its newly released video examine algorithmic chaos and social fracture without scolding or cynicism, and that choice gives their message unusual power.

Shot in the studio, the video keeps the frame tight: microphones, instruments, glances traded mid-phrase. In a time when political feeds and comment sections feel like open tabs in the back of the brain, this setting lands as intentional. It suggests that connection is not an abstract talking point, it is a practice, something that happens at conversational distance.

The origin story is fittingly low-key. “This song started as a conversation about our phones,” Hirshberg says. Both he and Blacc were trying to limit their own social media use, to mute some of the more divisive signals that filter into daily life. From that came a song “about breaking free of the forces that divide us,” built around the idea that listening across disagreement is part of the work, not a sentimental add-on.

Blacc has long approached music as an instrument for civic and emotional repair, and he is clear about why he signed on. “I believe in using music to try to lift people up and bring people together,” he explains. “And the concept of this song is one that is needed right now.” The video reflects that philosophy by refusing to caricature any side; its only real argument is that people deserve more chances to meet outside the churn.

“For Real” also sets the tone for Hirshberg’s upcoming third album, More Is Not The Answer, slated for early 2026. His previous record, Second Hand Smoke, won praise from Relix for exploring “positive themes in the face of personal challenges.” The new project shifts the lens outward, examining how empathy, restraint, and honest dialogue might operate in a noisy age. If “For Real” is the opening chapter, it suggests an album built less on volume and more on carefully chosen words.

Eric Hirshberg Online:

Spotify | Website | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

Aloe Blacc Online:

Spotify | Website | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | X

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