Swedish singer-songwriter Lykke Li has released her first new music in two years, a cover of Johnny Cash’s ‘Ring of Fire’. The track is part of the soundtrack for Netflix’s latest dark fantasy film, Damsel, and was recorded specifically for the movie. The cast includes the likes of Millie Bobby Brown, Ray Winstone and Angela Bassett. Speaking to Variety about reinterpreting Cash’s classic song, Li said that, “To be honest, the only version I’ve ever heard in my whole life is the Johnny Cash version, so I had no real history. I just went into it pretty blank. I sat down at the piano and the first thing that came out of my mouth was what I recorded.”
Li revealed that June Carter Cash heavily inspired her for this particular rendition. The song was originally written by Carter Cash and Merle Kilgore and recorded for the first time by Carter Cash’s sister, Anita. Li said that she was “very inspired by June Carter,” and only discovered that it was written by her after beginning work on the project and doing some initial research. “What I read was that she wrote this when they were both married to other people and she was like, shit, I’m about to fall in love and it’s going to blow up and ruin my life. But also there’s no other way. So there’s this haunting quality that it is to fall in love. It really is like stepping into a ring of fire.”
Li’s music has always had a melancholic yet relatable quality to it, with deeply personal lyrics and a stunning voice. As a follow-up to her 2022 album ‘Eyeye,’ the artist is currently working on making it “more like an ambient, instrumental, sonic dream.” Li’s rendition of ‘Ring of Fire’ adds to the legacy of the classic song while giving it a fresh and original spin
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