The Favors are keeping the dream alive. Today, the duo made up of longtime collaborators FINNEAS and Ashe unveiled their second single “The Hudson,” a cinematic follow-up to their debut track “The Little Mess You Made.” Both tracks will appear on The Dream, the duo’s first full-length album together, out September 19 via Darkroom Records.
A Love Letter to New York—and Heartbreak
Set to soft piano and layered harmonies, “The Hudson” captures the warm ache of a love slipping away. Ashe opens the song with poetic vulnerability: “The trees were bare and naked, and so were we—two old strangers sharing really personal things.” The lyrics evoke fleeting intimacy, while FINNEAS joins on the chorus: “All I’ve ever known is gone. I’ve got nothing but you to lose.”
The track swells with retro-tinged percussion, emotional guitar riffs, and harmonies that feel lifted from a lost Laurel Canyon demo tape. It’s a timeless sound that reflects their self-described “era-agnostic” approach to music.
In a statement, FINNEAS explains the song’s structure as almost theatrical: “Part of the band identity involves these characters who are singing about an experience to each other. It’s a musical theater design, and it rarely happens in pop. You can picture two individuals in an apartment overlooking The Hudson singing about the same thing.”
A Visual Story in Black and White
Directed by Alex Lockett, the official music video leans into the song’s emotional tension and vintage aesthetic. It’s a moody, filmic visual full of grainy textures, black-and-white vignettes, and soft-focus color shots of Ashe and FINNEAS by the water.
From “Moral of the Story” to The Dream
Fans of Ashe and FINNEAS will remember their breakout hit “Moral of the Story” in 2019, and 2021’s fan-favorite duet “Till Forever Falls Apart.” Now, they’ve fully embraced their shared artistic vision as The Favors.
Their upcoming album, The Dream, was co-written and recorded between Nashville (Ashe’s home) and Los Angeles (where FINNEAS lives). The project pays homage to the Laurel Canyon sound with nods to Carole King, Simon & Garfunkel, and Fleetwood Mac, all through a 2025 lens.
“This is the way every artist dreams of making an album,” Ashe shares. “People don’t sing together anymore when they’re recording, but it was so romantic and fun.”
“It’s a true ‘long-play album’ in its real intended meaning,” FINNEAS adds. “Hopefully, you can have friends over, cook a meal, and play this on vinyl front-to-back.”
Ashe sums it up perfectly: “I want you to feel simultaneously warm, fuzzy, and heartbroken at the same time.”
