Every day we are faced with the decision of how we want to live our lives. We can choose to shy away from our true selves and let other people tell us who to be, or we can choose to embrace who we really are and find happiness within ourselves. The journey to making this choice, though, is not one that happens overnight. It takes hard work and dedication to learn to be comfortable with fully embracing who we are and living for ourselves rather than for others. For each person, this journey is different, yet knowing that you are not the only one experiencing this journey can help you find comfort and confidence that someday the choice to be your true self will be an easier one. 

Dillane Wehbe, GSB ’22, is sharing his own journey of how he found himself, and in turn, happiness, on his debut EP “Maybe Tomorrow.” As someone who has struggled with mental health issues his whole life, Dillane, who goes by just his first name for music, is finally comfortable enough reflecting on the journey he has been on and embracing the emotions he once shied away from. Through raw and relatable lyrics, he uses the EP to outline his personal experiences with depression, loneliness, happiness and love.

The mixtape begins with “Incomplete,” which Wehbe says came together in just 10 minutes. “It just felt so natural saying what I had to say,” he said, “it’s high energy, it’s raw, it’s got everything so I just love it.” Over a melodic guitar and trap 808s, Wehbe looks back on a breakup, saying he feels incomplete now that the relationship has ended. The emotion in his voice is palpable as he sings, “I know that you will not stay with me / For eternity I will feel incomplete.”

On “Alone,” Wehbe reassures listeners that they are not alone, no matter the struggles they are going through. He recalls the feelings of depression and loneliness he once felt and gives listeners comfort, saying, “You’re not alone / please hear me through this song / I know everybody’s got a different pain but believe me when I tell you that you are not insane.” The slower guitar instrumental and pitched-up vocal ad libs complement the track’s message and highlight the versatility of Wehbe’s voice, as he transitions from singing to rapping to then speaking directly to listeners.

Wehbe is more lovestruck on the tape’s next few tracks. He describes the “high” of love on “Midnight Social,” saying, “Took a lot of drugs but none of them are like you / I don’t need the drugs now I just gotta have you.” On the ’90s rock-inspired “Casual,” Wehbe details the uniqueness of a specific relationship, sentimentally singing, “Our love isn’t something I’d call casual / Everything about you is unusual / How your energy is really mystical.”

The middle of the EP outlines the comedown from the high of love Wehbe described on the previous tracks. On “Morning After,” Wehbe expresses the pain of loving someone so much and not receiving that same love in return, recognizing, “You can’t be everything I’ll ever need / Come take me by the hand, I’ll set you free.” The production on this track is especially strong, as it features a bright guitar instrumental that feels hopeful with a tinge of sadness — a perfect reflection of Wehbe’s lovestruck yet frustrated lyrics.

Wehbe falls even deeper into his heartbreak on “Fade Away,” where he discusses the depression he experienced following a breakup. He shows off a softer side of his voice as he sings, “Now that I lost you I’m going insane / I think that it’s time I fade away.” Later on the track, he heartbreakingly cries, “I guess Juice was right cuz all girls are the same,” referencing the late Juice Wrld’s 2018 breakout hit “All Girls Are The Same.”

The project’s next track “Rejection F*****g Sucks” serves as an interlude, as it features a voicemail offering a touching message of hope and positivity. That message is, “It really just took you to work it out in your head and get through it yourself … Maybe it does take a little more rejection to get there … Some of the toughest personalities have to go through some scars and pain to get to where they ultimately need to go.”

Taking inspiration from the interlude’s theme, Wehbe is able to look at heartbreak from a different angle on “Moving On.” With a rock vibe similar to “Casual,” the track is a testament to Wehbe’s growth as an individual. Whereas in the past he allowed pain to consume him, he now is able to look at it from a mature perspective as he sings, “I refuse to allow this pain to ever feel a thing.” On the chorus, he repeats, “I’m moving on, on from you / There is nothing for you to do.”

“Maybe Tomorrow” closes with the high energy of “Summer Nights.” One of Wehbe’s personal favorite tracks, both for its “good vibe” and the fact that it was the first song he recorded on his mic, “Summer Nights” is the perfect outro for the EP. It is a reflection of where Wehbe is currently in his life, as he says he is now happier and more comfortable expressing himself than he ever was before. 

Although Wehbe has only fully been dedicating himself to music since last December, he says music has been a lifelong passion. That passion is evident on “Maybe Tomorrow.” You can tell Wehbe has put his heart and soul into the project and that music is his life simply from the emotion in his voice and his completely raw lyrics. The fact that he recorded the entire tape in a studio he built in his bedroom is a testament in itself to his love for music.

With the help of Fordham junior Zach Fortin, who produced every song on the EP, Wehbe is planning for his music career to only go up from here. With his recent move to Los Angeles to pursue music full time and over 90 tracks in the bank, Wehbe is confident that one day his name will be on a billboard in Times Square, just like it is on the cover art for “Maybe Tomorrow.” If his debut mixtape is any indication of his enormous potential, Wehbe’s dream doesn’t seem that far out of reach.