How Scotty Sire Faced His Struggles Head-On With ‘Out of My Skin’

YouTube sensation and singer-songwriter Scotty Sire has always been open and honest about his struggles in his music, but we think his latest single, "Out of My Skin," is his most powerful yet.

The new track is emotional, powerful and almost painfully relatable, demonstrating his skills as an artist, and we haven't been able to stop listening since it dropped last month. We just had to get to know how the song came to be, and what the song means to Scotty, and we were lucky enough to get the chance to ask him all of our most pressing questions about the track.

Sweety High: What was the songwriting process of "Out of My Skin"?

Scotty Sire: I sat down with the producer of the song (Jon Lundin) as he played some really chill guitar riffs. I said, "I like the way that sounds" and he started working on putting the music together on the computer. While he was adding the musical elements to the song, the lyrics just kind of spilled out that day. We held onto the track for two years trying to think of a way to make the chorus sound bigger. Once I started working on my upcoming album, I brought in some previously written songs that I wanted to finish. The label and I had decided that having two of my producers who I frequently work with would be a good team to put together the full project. So Jon, Bruce Wiegner and I opened up this track and tried to figure out what we needed to do to make it sound just a bit bigger. I think in one minute, Bruce suggested we take the high energy part of the bridge we'd written and switch it into the chorus. It was kind of crazy how well it worked. It also gave me confidence that I made the right decision to have both of them executive produce. Two musical geniuses are better than one!

 

SH: What specific feelings did you want to channel in the track? Are the emotions expressed on the track something you deal with often?

SS: I wanted to dive into the feeling of not being comfortable in your skin, with what's going on in your head, or where you're at in life. Sometimes I have trouble shaking off dark or anxious thoughts that come into my mind (and I think many others do as well). Not being able to let go of things that have bothered you. Sometimes it seems like even things that have happened years ago somehow pile up with all the more recent issues you've had. I don't know, it's almost like holding a grudge against yourself instead of being able to forgive your own mistakes or negative things that happened to you in the past.

 

SH: Do you have any advice for those moments when we realize we're living in our heads and not reality?

SS: I think my anxiety comes largely from my body being understimulated while my brain is overstimulated. When I realize my mind is starting to play tricks on me, I do whatever I can to trick it back into a more relaxed state of thinking. My biggest go-to for this is exercise. I try to tire myself out and also, exercise releases dopamine in your brain that makes you happy, right? I find that whenever I actually believe that something is going to make me feel better, it does. I also run a CBD company called HappyFace, so naturally, my last run-in with the old panic attack I made some tea and put some CBD oil in there.

 

SH: What's your favorite lyric from the song? Why?

SS: I like:

"Sometimes I can't help but feel,
It'll never pass, I won't heal,
It scares me to death if it's real"

at the very end of the song. The whole song is about recognizing that these things going on are in your head. If you can let go of these resurfacing, intrusive thoughts, then you'll be able to get past the feeling that you're crawling out of your skin, or losing your mind, or like the world is crumbling around you. I have to recognize that sometimes it's much harder than others to get out of your head and let these moments pass.

 

SH: How is this song different from what you've released in the past? Why was it important to you for this one to be introspective and personal?

SS: It's different mostly in the production and pacing, to be honest. I've sung, or lightheartedly "rapped" about my feelings and struggles with mental health since I started making music. I think the biggest difference with this one is that I didn't try to make it sound fun, or funny—I wanted it to be serious. I think a lighthearted approach to a lot of things in life is great, but everyone once in a while you've got to be serious.

 

SH: Is there anything else you'd like to add?

SS: 2 + 2, but I just can't figure it out.

 

If you can't get enough of this track, click HERE to read our interview with EMELINE on her hit song 'this is how i learn to say no.'