Johnny - Faith Kayrooz

Faith Kayrooz’s Johnny captures the struggle of wanting to escape while tied down by duty, longing for home yet falling apart.

Johnny by Faith Kayrooz captures the push and pull between the longing to escape and the weight of responsibility. Her emotive vocals carry that tension with raw honesty, while rhythmic acoustic guitars move with the emotion of the song, mirroring the restlessness at its core. Strings weave through the arrangement, adding depth and richness to her voice, giving the story an even greater sense of urgency and vulnerability. It’s a performance that feels both intimate and cinematic.

“Johnny’s not like other boys, he wishes he could stay at school most days. Cause everyday his Mum grows a little more thin, what’s scary to him, is he doesn’t recognise his father’s face.”

As the track shifts into quieter moments, finger-plucked acoustic guitar parts come forward, placing emphasis on the lyrics and drawing the listener closer. These stripped-back sections allow the storytelling to breathe, creating contrast that makes the bigger, fuller moments hit harder. The interplay of restraint and release in both the music and vocals reflects the song’s themes of holding on and breaking away, leaving a lasting emotional imprint. The result is a song that stays with you long after it ends.

Review by James Theocharous