Hannah Hill has always written like someone unafraid to linger in the shadows of her own emotions, but with her new sophomore EP Underbelly, the New York–based singer-songwriter steps even deeper into the raw, unvarnished corners of her inner world. Crafted between the restless pulse of NYC and the quiet sprawl of rural Wisconsin, Underbelly feels both intimate and expansive, a body of work shaped by lived experience, sharpened perspective, and a growing trust in vulnerability as a creative compass.
We chat with Hannah Hill all about her evolving storytelling, her love for live instrumentation, and the tug-of-war between the places she calls home. Here, she opens up about the emotional spine of Underbelly, the instruments that have become extensions of her voice, and the next chapter already beginning to take shape.
Underbelly is your sophomore EP, how do you feel your sound and storytelling have evolved since your debut?
My storytelling has evolved immensely since I first started releasing music. I attribute that to my taste as a listener evolving, and also to the sheer number of hours I’ve spent writing since those early days – I think I’m just getting better with more experience under my belt. On top of that, of course, I’ve lived more. I have so much more to write about! I’d like to think that the way I write has grown parallel to the way I speak and the way I think about my life and about the world. In my opinion, Underbelly examines a wider range of emotions and experiences than past projects, which were a bit more zoomed in on a very specific time. This progression really mirrors the way I think about my life now – I just have the capacity to consider more perspectives and angles and distinct relationships at the same time, far better than when I was younger.
What does the title Underbelly represent for you? Is there a thematic or emotional “underbelly” you’re revealing on this record?
Underbelly as the title came to me pretty quickly. It wasn’t something I mulled over, there was no close second, it just won right as it entered my head. So much of this EP is about vulnerability, and accepting and admitting my own shortcomings and mistakes. When an animal reveals its underbelly, it is at its most vulnerable. That kind of vulnerability is an essential piece in loving someone, and this EP really is about a bunch of different kinds of love I have in my life.
The project moves through themes of regret, resilience, and human nature. Was there a particular moment or realization that anchored these songs for you?
I wrote all of these songs on their own, just as singles, meaning I didn’t go into writing them thinking about how they’d come together as a project. I think doing that allowed me to build them uninhibited and let themselves take on their own identity. The moment I realized they had all come together was when I was writing the final song, Underbelly. That song really tied together the themes of the EP for me.
You’ve described wanting your music to transport listeners “to your childhood bedroom” or “the forest at the edge of your hometown.” How did you translate that sense of place into the production and arrangements of Underbelly?
We recorded all the instruments live on this project because we wanted every aspect of each song to feel deeply human, even potentially imperfect. Live production, as opposed to programmed drums or synths definitely has an effect on how the song is received. It feels homemade, and again, deeply human. That in itself, I think, feels nostalgic which might just make you feel like you’re in “the forest at the edge of your hometown” or in “your childhood bedroom”.
You wrote the EP between New York City and rural Wisconsin. two very different environments. How did those settings shape the music?
My relationship to NYC and to my home in Wisconsin is vastly different, and yet I feel equally at home in both places. New York is the place where I’ve built my adult life, created a home for myself with my girlfriend, and created this career. Wisconsin, on the other hand, is where my family is, it’s a place of profound serenity and connection to nature. Both places inspire me creatively, but they bring out different parts of my creative mind. I feel like when I’m in Wisconsin, I’m writing more Americana, sometimes even country-adjacent music, whereas in New York I’m a bit more experimental with sounds. Most of the songs on this project started in Wisconsin, so they have their roots in acoustic guitar, they feel very earthy, and homegrown, but they were built out and produced in New York which allowed them to take shape and grow into something a bit more polished.
Acoustic guitar and pedal steel are at the core of your sound. What draws you to those instruments, and how do they help express the emotional tone of your songs?
Acoustic guitar was the first instrument I ever learned and it remains my single favorite sound in the world. It’s always the first thing I reach for when I go to write a song. Pedal steel was actually something I discovered only about 2 years ago and I think it compliments an acoustic guitar so well. To me, it mimics the lurch of pain through a body or a swell of relief. It can be devastating, it can be uplifting, it can be melancholy – it’s just such a unique and lovely texture to add to a song. I think there’s also something deeply self reflective in the sound of a pedal steel – maybe that comes from this profound sense of loneliness that I tend to feel when I hear the sound. Acoustic guitar, of course, has that very confessional, story-teller air to it which I’ve always felt and appreciated. These two instruments just felt like the obvious choice for my music.
What do you hope listeners take away from Underbelly after hearing it from start to finish?
I hope they take away whatever it is they take away! What I mean by this is that I don’t expect everyone to take away the same thing. I know everyone will interpret the music differently so I don’t feel like I should ascribe a message onto it. What I personally take away from it are feelings of forgiveness and unconditional love, but again, that’s okay if someone else doesn’t get that at all.
Is there a lyric or moment on the EP that you feel best represents who you are as an artist today?
I wouldn’t say that there’s one lyric that best represents who I am as an artist today but there definitely are lyrics within Underbelly that I’d say I’m most proud of. In ‘If I Kill You’, I wrote the lines, “Do you remember the garage sale on the corner? Didn’t let you buy what you wanted just cause I held the quarters. Now I'm thinking that I still do – holding something I don't understand over you. The only power a little girl gets is over her brother till one day he just snaps.” I love those lines because they describe the experience of being an older sister in a way that feels so authentic to me. I feel like I’d been searching for how exactly to describe that experience until I finally did find those lyrics.
If Underbelly is one chapter, what do you imagine the next one will sound or feel like? What's next for Hannah Hill?
To be honest, I’m not entirely sure. I’ve definitely started writing the next project, but I’m going about it the same way as Underbelly where I’m taking things song-by-song and just seeing how they fall together. I will say, I’ve been listening to a lot of Ethel Cain and Radiohead lately, so you might hear elements of those artists in the music production-wise. Think ambient electric guitar and synths. Writing-wise, though, I’m not really altering the way I write these songs. Perhaps a little more collaboration is in my future, but generally my process remains.
Connect with Hannah Hill: INSTAGRAM
