In the song “Lonely,” Anna Thoresen opens her emotional closet of isolation after relocation to Los Angeles. She actually gives a succinct description with raw, reflective lyrics of the loneliness that accompanies a new environment, disconnection with her own self, and the world around her.

It opens with Anna describing how physical touch and emotional expression went far away. She says she hasn’t cried in a very long time, which is representative of the numbness that accompanies isolation. Where she says she “forgot how to feel,” Anna is opening up about her struggle with emotional emptiness. Obviously, it points out that she has become disconnected from her feelings and even finds joy in things that mattered to her once, such as singing her favorite songs.

As the song flows, Anna opens up with the audience even more. Spending a Sunday afternoon doing nothing in particular, thinks of taking drugs to get off her pain; this is generally a common underlying theme in lonely songs, since aimlessness coupled with the searching for something to fill the void are common answers to emotional disconnect. But the honesty of Anna’s lyrics is a juxtaposed interpretation of what it’s like to slip into self-doubt and other harmful distractions not knowing which direction to take.

The repeated line “I hope that you’re out there, I really do” stands out as a utterance of longing for connection. In this, Anna is showing her vulnerability, actually hoping there is someone-soulmate or kindred spirit-out there waiting. It’s such an intimate confession of her, wanting human touch, but all the same, there is the fear that probably that person is not out there, which is what makes her loneliness deeper. She questions herself if she was just wasting her time, signaling an internal fight whether it was worth the effort to find a connection.

The repeated use of the word “lonely” in the chorus conveys the feeling of an open void Anna has inside herself. Something like the simplistic expression of that word, taken several times in one song, points to her weighty lonely existence. Repetition fails to express feelings in this place but to manifest a very depressing reality. Repetitions turn into deliverances in that place; hence, saying it all over means to face this very word in confrontation.

The song’s bridge becomes a quiet reflection on the night. Anna sets up a scenario where the darkness falls fast, and even something as ordinary as trying to fix her TV is inconsequential. The real problem, however, is that she cannot sleep, which is poetically encapsulated by her needing to shut the blinds. The moment underlines her unease, the feeling that even the most trivial actions have turned into a challenge when the mind is filled with uncertainty and unrest.

As the song unfolds, Anna doesn’t just dwell on her loneliness but rather how it would invade every nook and cranny of even the most mundane things of her life. The disparity between her inner world and the outer world is stark, which does not or rather keeps aloof from her inner turmoil. Yet, even with all the weighted feelings, there’s this faint hope-slippery, evanescent-hope that she may still find a way from this emotional desert island.

Overall, “Lonely” is a track with beautiful reflectiveness, putting together emotional turbulence with being far away from home into the pool of strangers. Anna Thoresen’s lyrics talk to those who have felt unconnected with everyone, sometimes knowing their standing on this earth or not. Its honesty and vulnerabilities make “Lonely” no less than anything but the reason for explaining one’s sad situation and actually defining the need in human hearts-to be among companions. It resonates with the listener on a deeper level because it’s something that’s relatable, raw, and comforting in its loneliness.