Fiona Apple has released her first new song in five years.
The 47-year-old singer-songwriter – who spent over two years working as a court watcher – has unveiled the music video for new song ‘Pretrial (Let Her Go Home)’, which features women who have been impacted by pretrial detention.
She said in a statement: “I hope that this song, and the images shared with me, can help to show what is at stake when someone is kept in pretrial detention.
“I give this song in friendship and respect to all who have experienced the pain of pretrial detention and to the women of the group’s leadership who have taught me so much and whom I truly love.”
Fiona noted that she saw “time and time again” how “people were taken away and put in jail, for no other reason than that they couldn’t afford to buy their way free”.
She added: “[It was] particularly hard to hear mothers and caretakers get taken away from the people who depend on them.”
Fiona has spent the last five years volunteering for the Free Black Mamas DMV bailout, where she has seen “the stories of women who fought for and won their freedom with the tireless and loving support of the leadership”.
The video – which was produced by Zealous and Special Operations Studios – includes photos and video footage from women who were jailed despite being presumed innocent, because they couldn’t afford to pay bail.
According to a press release: “[The video] underscores the cold realities of the song, while showing thousands of images of everyday hope and freedom – warm photos and videos provided by women who’ve lived through pretrial detention, capturing family moments, personal accomplishments, and community bonding.”
The emotional song and powerful video is Fiona’s first new original track since 2020 album ‘Fetch The Bolt Cutters’.
In March she appeared on The Waterboys’ single ‘Letter From An Unknown Girlfriend’, while just last month she covered Neil Young’s ‘Heart of Gold’ for a tribute album, ‘Heart Of Gold: The Songs Of Neil Young Volume I’.