Singled Out: Aliza Hava's Let It Roar

09-04-2025

Aliza Hava is gearing up to release her new album Into the Light next week, and to celebrate we asked her to tell us about the single "Let It Roar", which features Gregg Bissonette, best known as a drummer for David Lee Roth and Ringo Starr's All-Starr Band. Here is the story:

"Let It Roar" is the newest single from my upcoming album, Into the Light. It's about tapping into the anger we often bury inside when we feel like we need to keep silent about the things that upset us.

Society tells us that it's not okay to be angry, that we (especially as women) need to keep quiet to keep the peace. The problem is, when we don't honor our feelings and express our anger in a healthy way, it becomes suppressed inside us and can turn into illness. It's also a common pattern that has been passed down from generation to generation in families where abuse happens. Those of us who have experienced abuse at home are often told to keep quiet, keep the "family secrets," stuff it all down and just carry on as if there's nothing wrong. When we carry that pain inside of us, it often festers and turns into depression.

"Let It Roar" is about acknowledging, honoring, and releasing that anger in a healthy way through the power of the voice and speaking your mind, so that you can be free of the past and the pain. In my case, singing has had a healing impact on me from a very young age. Having grown up in a very dysfunctional and violent household, music was my saving grace. Finding a way to express myself through the power of song had a life-saving impact on me. I say this without exaggeration. If it were not for music, I probably wouldn't have survived my childhood. That powerful truth is channeled into "Let It Roar," and every time I sing it, I feel better because a deep release is happening. I also feel like I'm channeling the pain of my ancestors into the music, which gives it even richer meaning.

My friend Marla Rubenstein and I wrote this song together when I was working on new songs for Into the Light. The album has the theme of acknowledging and breaking cycles of abuse, facing your demons head on, and shining a light into the darkness in order to heal. As well as being a great songwriter, Marla was also a family therapist for many years and brought her own experience and wisdom to the table when writing the lyrics.

The track and album were produced by Mikal Blue, who is a multi-platinum, Grammy award-winning producer and SONY/ATV songwriter. We worked at his studio, Revolver Recordings in Thousand Oaks, CA, and he brought in some great musicians to record, including legendary rock drummer, Gregg Bissonette and guitarist/bassist Dalton Cyr. I played piano on it and my friend Jason Achilles Mezilis played both the Fender Rhodes and electric guitar. After being friends with Jason for years, it was really fun to get him into the studio and hear him rock out, having never heard the song before. He just jumped right into the session and nailed it. Jason is an LA based musician who is also an astrophile. He helped design the microphone that went on the Mars Perseverance Rover that captured the first live recordings of sound on Mars. Needless to say, the sound feels quite epic.

I'm very grateful that so many amazing musicians were involved in the creation of this track. It's definitely one of my favorites on the album, and I love hearing people sing along to it and let their own voices soar.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more here