The O’My’s Return With “No Swimming” EP

Written by Vocalo Radio on December 24, 2021

*^{Maceo Vidal-Haymes and Nick Hennessey of The O’My’s.}*
*^{By René Marban.}*

“Working on songs so deeply tied to human connection in the dead of the pandemic was, in many ways, cathartic and healing. Looking at these complicated parts of our lives from different perspectives gave us new understandings and taught us patience.”
– Maceo Vidal-Haymes (The O’My’s)

Rogers Park alt-R&B duo The O’My’s are back with brand new EP No Swimming, released Dec. 10.

Maceo Vidal-Haymes and Nick Hennessey, AKA The O’My’s, returned to the scene Dec. 10 with a five-track EP featuring Chicago rapper Femdot and formerly-Chicago, now-LA based vocalist Alex Banin.

Cerebral and flowing like water, the lo-fi EP is guided by Vidal-Haymes’ falsetto as it explores stages of interpersonal relationships, loneliness and drifting communities during the most locked-down portions of the COVID-19 crisis.

“This group of songs are all reflections on human relationships when viewing them in their absence and in isolation,” stated Vidal-Haymes in the EP’s press release. “There’s a tug of war between faith and trust, you need to protect your heart, but also need to have it open to find joy.”

Preceded by the EP’s first single, “Realistic,” featuring Alex Banin, No Swimming finds the O’My’s with an expanded style from their past releases. In the two years since their 2019 EP Above Ground, the duo experimented and reflected on their sound to bring listeners their most polished and introspective release yet.

The cover of No Swimming leans toward the literal, a photo taken by Vidal-Haymes of the red flag used at lifeguard stands on Chicago beaches to indicate unsafe swimming conditions. The title, No Swimming, is a message to take caution for public and personal safety, but not to stay entirely isolated from the world as a whole.

Jill Hopkins chatted with Hennessey and Vidal-Haymes about the EP, its cover, their music videos and more. Stream it on Spotify below.