Imagine Justin Timberlake, Justin Bieber, and Jackson Wang in one music project; the result is Corbyn Besson’s debut EP Head First. With r&b and pop inspirations, the six-track EP will have the listener dancing, snapping their fingers, and dedicating the songs to a loved one in time for Valentine's Day.
The 27-year-old, originally from Dallas, Texas, joined the five-member boy group Why Don’t We in 2016, and after the group's separation in 2022, Corbyn entered a new era in his music career. Although he’s been releasing songs as a solo artist since 2024, this debut EP is his true self, where he feels the most freedom. “I felt like these six songs are the first true testament to who I am as a person and as an artist. It felt like I was taking a risk, doing something different than what people might have expected from me,” Corbyn said. “To me, that felt like what it feels like to just dive in headfirst, whether you want to take it literally, into a pool or into an opportunity. So I named the EP [Head First] because it's my first project, and this really felt kind of like a leap of faith for me to just put my heart out on the line and hope that people love it.”
With all the songs being passionate and romantic, it's evident that Corbyn is in love with a special someone, with his career, and with life. As the first track, “Kiss” allows the listener to get into his world of finding his person who feels like home. This person keeps him grounded and his craving to slow down time, during his busy artistic lifestyle, so he can spend quality time and kiss this person. He sings, “Moving too fast, baby, can you slow me down a minute. ‘Cause like my bed baby everything is better when you’re in it . . . Cause baby I just need your kiss. No, it doesn’t take more than a moment on your lips. When they’re pressed on mine, only you and I exist.” By starting the EP with this track, the listener quickly realizes Corbyn has finally found himself and is no longer overwhelmed or rushed by the busy boyband lifestyle he used to live. His lover makes him feel safe, with lyrics, “Yeah its been a long day, babe, won’t you bring it back around. Lately, I’ve been MIA. Now I’m ready to be found. Hold tight just you and I, it’s us against the world, oh no, there ain’t no other girl.” With drum beats and Corbyn’s whisper-like vocals, the track will make you daydream of that special kiss.
The following track, “Tied Up,” is the first track Corbyn wrote and it sets the foundation and emotion for the whole EP. With this song, you will want more than just a kiss from the special person. As a more sensual track, Corbyn sings about wanting to make love, as he sings, “Go ahead girl, don’t hold back. I got you, damn you, looking so fine. I got you, baby, let me inside. I got you, girl, what’s it gonna take to make you mine.” With finger snaps, string instruments and his falsettos, he continues singing, “I feel your clothing coming off. Leave it all on the floor and oh baby I just wanna take you home. Double knot it, we can get tied up if you want it . . . keep on dancing, you can get wifed up.” The track is a feel-good song that transitions well into the next track “Summer,” which feels like a warm summer day.
The rumor is that 2026 is the new and improved 2016, and this track is the perfect example of reminiscing on the summer days of 2016. This track, featuring R&B legend Jeremih, will have you listening to it out in the poolside or while driving with the windows down as you’re feeling the summer breeze. In the chorus, Corbyn sings, “Feels like every summer. There’s a way that you move. One way or another. Or another. Feels like every summer there’s a way that you move. I know you’ll do what you wanna.” The song is refreshing and can be heard while drinking a refreshing drink to cool down from the hot weather.
After going back to 2016, “Blink” featuring K-pop star TZUYU, will have you going back even further to 2006, as this early ‘2000s pop track allows Corbyn’s creative side and his dance moves in the music video to shine.
“[Tzuyu] is a superstar. And I think what's funny too, is I come from a boy band, and she's in a girl group, so there's kind of an interesting through line there.” Corbyn said. “If I had done it with anybody else, I don't think it would have made the song as good as it is, and I don't think it would have been as special. I think the collaboration was a little bit unexpected, and I think that's what made it really cool. And to be able to blend cultures, and work with somebody from literally across the world that speaks an entirely different language than I do, was awesome.”
The track starts out with a similar rhythm as Michael Jackson’s 2001 song “You Rock My World.” The concept of the song is Corbyn trying to get the attention of a girl with lyrics, “You see that girl? There's just somethin' about her. I just, I just love the way she struttin' like a runway show, that collarbone could cut a damn cake. That girl right there, she's an extraterrestrial, she looks like she landed from space.” The song continues with a similar style to Chinese singer Jackson Wang and will definitely get the listener dancing, as Corbyn and Tzuyu sing, “And tonight she got me wrapped around her fingers so tight. If looks really kill, then baby, show me the light. I think I could die from just one look in her eyes. And she was like don't blink, you might miss it. Don't talk too much, just listen. . . If you're slick and stay with it. Then I just might let you hit it.” The theme of the track is everything happening in the blink of an eye, so don’t blink because you might miss the moment.
You don’t want to miss listening to “Blink,” but after listening to it and dancing, you will sit back down daydreaming about the person you love the most, to the point you want them to ruin you, although not literally. In “Ruin Me," Corbyn sings to his lover, “Double doors, mind of yours. Double reservation from the beamer to the bed. Now it's 2 am, we watching friends on this California king with my twin, she a queen.”
“So the lyrics there, it's a play on the mattress sizes. But also, my girlfriend is an identical twin. So there's like, just some cool little through lines there. This song I would say, is probably the most inspired directly by her and our relationship,” Corbyn said. This country pop-like track will make the listener feel like they are outside in a bonfire at night with their significant other, as the lyrics continue, “I want you to mess it up for everyone else. People put me through the fire, make my heart melt. I want you to ruin me, baby. This is the type of love that makes me lie to myself. Til we get to heaven, baby put me through hell.”
Corbyn explains that the title of the track is the complete opposite to the essence of the song. “When you hear the words ruin me, you kind of think negatively. You know, it's like you think you want someone to destroy your life, right? But the idea of this song is not necessarily like ruin my life in a bad way. It's more about ruin the idea of love for me. Love me so good that I won't be able to find this love with anybody else. So it's an interesting spin on a concept that I think people might assume is negative when they first see the title, and so I hope that surprises some people when they listen.”
With the final track, “Hypnotized,” the listener gets to go even further back in time to the '80s. Instead of a 2016 summer or a 2006 dance class, this track will take you back to 1986, skateboarding with your crush with a Sony Walkman. With his softer vocals, Corbyn sings, “When you look at me, I get hypnotized. I can’t help but to beg for it. I want to put it on you every night . . . I’ve seen it all, and you’re the only one that makes me feel the way I do, for you.”
This song was in the back burner for a while, but Corbyn decided to revisit it, change a few things, and eventually add it to the EP. “I wanted something on my EP to have a kind of smoother r&b feel, because most of the records on this EP are pretty punchy. And I wanted to close the EP with a song that just felt smooth and felt like after this entire journey you just went on, now it's kind of ending with this bright, smooth, calmer listening experience,” Corbyn said. He also mentioned this is the song he recorded, arranged and edited entirely. Plus, there are more than 100 of his vocal tracks stacked for this song.
“Hypnotized” is a song that could have fit perfectly in the final season of Stranger Things.
If six tracks aren’t enough, no worries because Corbyn hopes to release an album later in the year. The EP also comes with a short film on his YouTube channel where Corbyn tells the story of his life experiences for the last five years and how it has led to this moment in his career.
Corbyn also has a tour prepared for his fans in the following months, where he will not only sing and play the guitar, but also show his dance moves. Although a bit nervous, he is excited for tour, as he has been yearning for it ever since the pandemic.
Dive head first into Corbyn’s world:
