Greyson Chance, with long brown hair and a brown mustache and beard, stares into the camera wearing a white t-shirt. He stands in front of a blue sky.
Image Credit: Britt Phillips

Greyson Chance just teased a folksy and personal new single called “Haymaker,” and we’re already reaching for the tissues.

The 26-year-old singer –– who’s become something of a queer indie-pop darling in the years following his 2010 viral performance of Lady Gaga‘s “Paparazzi” as a teen –– implied a homophobic interaction with his brother inspired the track in a social media post on Thursday (June 13).

“Things got physical between my brother and I,” Chance wrote. “[‘Haymaker’] is a song influenced by a punch, but it’s a lot more than that. I haven’t spoken to him in three years. Family is everything, until there’s nothing left. That’s what this song is about.”

In a preview of the track –– which reportedly drops June 28 –– he sings, “So go ahead and blame it on your redneck nature / Hey brother, hit me with your haymaker.”

For the vocabulary-challenged, the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines “haymaker” as “a powerful blow,” and “redneck nature” likely refers to conservative views in Edmond, Oklahoma, where Greyson –– and his older brother in question, Tanner –– were raised.

Understandably, releasing the painful track seems to have taken a lot of time and Chance wants to make sure fans know the full context.

In another clip (which looks to be a trailer for the “Haymaker” music video), the singer walks through a grassy field in a baseball cap and plaid button-down shirt.

His voiceover explains the apparent violent moment: “I had never seen you like that before. Eyes wide, blood pumping, ready to hit anything that was in front of you. I just never thought it would be me. Brothers fight, I get that. We do now too, but I’m not afraid of you anymore.”

Watch.

Chance’s decision to drop the song near the end of Pride Month feels like an intentional reminder of the rejection and violence some LGBTQ+ people face after coming out to their families.

On June 5, he shared that this Pride, his “heart is with the countless non-binary, trans, and queer kids we have lost.” “We cannot afford to lose anymore,” he wrote in a post. “We must show them love. We must listen to them. We must talk to them at eye-level. We must express that they ARE enough.”

Furthermore, it seems like Chance is getting more vulnerable than before in this chapter of his career. “I feel more connected to myself as a songwriter than I ever have,” he explained. “These songs are mirrors, showing every fault line and every silver lining. I want it no other way.”

“Haymaker” marks Chance’s second release of 2024. Back in May, he dropped “Rearview Mirror,” a soft and plaintive track he described as “a tribute to everyone I’ve lost in the past three years, and a reminder to not be afraid to say I love you.”

Listen.

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