Guelph, Ontario-based singer-songwriter Trina Chakrabarti has released “Take A Stance,” a stripped-down protest song that moves away from the mythology and metaphor of her earlier work in favor of a direct message about anger, solidarity and collective responsibility.
The new single marks a shift from Chakrabarti’s 2024 debut EP, Underworld, which used mythological imagery to explore personal trauma. This time, the Canadian musician says she wanted the words themselves to remain at the center of the recording.
“I wanted this song to be more stripped down, and really have the lyrics shine,” Chakrabarti says. “Just like I want to embrace the anger of my personal experiences, I believe in embracing the anger from world issues.”
‘Take A Stance’ Trades Metaphor for Direct Lyrics
According to Chakrabarti, the song emerged from two moments of frustration. The singer-songwriter, who also works as a registered music therapist, says she wrote the first verse after seeing colleagues in her profession become more focused on the professionalism of language than on the human consequences of the events being discussed.
The second verse followed her observations of public reactions to escalating conflict involving Iran. From those experiences, “Take A Stance” developed into a wider examination of silence, complicity and the responsibility individuals have to respond to events around them.
“This track has no metaphors,” she says. “It is calling out the hypocrisy so directly, because with this topic, metaphors just are not enough.”
Chorus Focuses on Collective Responsibility
The chorus centers on the line, “there’s power in the people when we choose to take a stance,” reinforcing the song’s emphasis on collective action.
Its extended outro develops into a chant naming regions that Chakrabarti says deserve greater global attention, including Palestine, Congo, Sudan, Hawaiʻi, Kashmir, Iran, Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, Lebanon, Syria, Myanmar and Ukraine. Each sequence closes with the phrase “free them all.”
Another recurring line, “none of us are free till all of us are free,” reflects a sentiment Chakrabarti connects with Black activists including Maya Angelou, Malcolm X and Opal Lee.
“We owe each other everything,” she says, “because that is what it means to be in community.”
Family History Shapes Chakrabarti’s Perspective
For Chakrabarti, the themes behind “Take A Stance” are connected to both political issues and her own family history, including experiences shaped by colonization and partition.
She says speaking publicly about these issues has become a responsibility rather than simply an artistic choice. A portion of the proceeds from the single is being donated directly to a friend’s family in Palestine.
“You don’t need a giant platform to take action,” she says. “Using your voice is more and more important every day, and it is never too late to speak out.”
A Stripped-Down Production Keeps the Focus on the Message
“Take A Stance” was produced, mixed and mastered by Ruthie Santiago. Chakrabarti wrote the lyrics and melody and performed the vocals and ukulele.
The single follows Underworld, Chakrabarti’s 2024 concept EP, which reimagined the myth of Hades and Persephone as a framework for examining trauma, anger, grief and chronic illness.
That project was created with producer Wonder Truly and a community of musicians Chakrabarti connected with through music streaming on Twitch.
Music Therapy and Songwriting Remain Closely Connected
Chakrabarti holds a graduate diploma and master’s degree in Music Therapy from Concordia University and has also received training from the Royal Conservatory of Music. She continues to work part time as a registered music therapist while pursuing her recording career.
She describes her music as a genre-bending exploration of personal experiences viewed through a social justice lens, drawing on different aspects of her life and community.
“Art has the ability to create meaningful change,” she says, “and if there is one piece of advice I can put forward, it is to make your human made creations, even if no one sees it.”
‘Something Like Hope’ Set to Continue the Story
Chakrabarti says her next single, “Something Like Hope,” is planned as the introduction to her next full-length project.
With “Take A Stance,” she continues developing a body of work that connects personal experience with broader social concerns. While Underworld relied on mythology to process difficult subjects, the new single deliberately removes that distance, placing its message directly in front of the listener.