Nathaniel Rateliff released his first new music in 10 months on Thursday with the single, “Redemption”. The song is set to appear in the upcoming Apple Original film Palmer, out January 29th, 2021 exclusively on AppleTV+.
This new composition comes following Rateliff’s critically-acclaimed solo album And It’s Still Alright, released in February. “Redemption” comes as the gap between Rateliff and his backing band The Night Sweats, with whom he found commercial success in 2015 with the hit single “S.O.B.”, grows further as the singer-songwriter continues to mine a solo career.
The sparing nature of “Redemption” is familiar to students of Rateliff’s blooming solo catalog with its sparing instrumentation and poignant lyricism. If it had not come some 10 months later and attached to a feature film, the track could even have been mistaken as one cut from And It’s Still Alright. While Rateliff is solely credited with writing the song, he actually received some guidance from the star of Palmer, Justin Timberlake, when discussing the song’s thematic purpose. In the film, Timberlake plays a hometown hero turned convicted felon who returns home after 12 years in prison to gather the pieces of his shattered existence, all from under the prying eyes of the community.
“When I was first asked to write a song for Palmer I was told what the film was about and where the song was going to be used,” Rateliff said in a press release. “The melody and the opening line came to me immediately. But it wasn’t until I had a conversation with Justin [Timberlake] that helped me to put the song together. He said the film was about redemption. I saw that in the characters and did my best to add to the scene in the film.”
Listen to “Redemption” by Nathaniel Rateliff via the player below or through your preferred streaming platform. The song is also featured in the film’s trailer. Scroll down to view the lyrics to “Redemption”.
Nathaniel Rateliff – “Redemption”
[Video: Nathaniel Rateliff]
Palmer – Trailer
[Video: Apple TV]
On Saturday, December 26th, Nathaniel Rateliff will perform alongside 40+ other artists as part of Georgia Comes Alive, a one-day virtual music festival aimed at promoting voter participation in the upcoming Georgia runoff elections by supporting local grassroots organizations, Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda and CivicGeorgia. Donate any amount to the cause GeorgiaComesAlive.com to receive a stream link on the day of the show (12/26). You can also enter to win exclusive prizes from GCA artists like a guitar signed and played by Bob Weir here. See below for a full list of performers.
