There is a moment in every collaboration when you can hear whether the chemistry is real or manufactured. On “honest,” the new single from Blue Capricorn and LOREN KOLE, that moment arrives early and never leaves. The track is a Latin indie-pop meditation on vulnerability and failed love, and while it is credited as a Blue Capricorn release, it is LOREN KOLE who gives the song its gravitational pull. The Dallas-based Cuban-American artist and producer brings a weight to the proceedings that transforms what could have been a beautiful but slight indie ballad into something far more resonant. Her presence is not a feature. It is a foundation.
LOREN KOLE has spent years building a reputation for music that feels cinematic and immersive, a dark and dreamy sound that draws listeners into her distinct melodic universe. On “honest,” that universe expands to include Blue Capricorn’s ethereal production, and the result is a track that feels suspended between intimacy and distance. Her voice carries the emotional complexity of the lyrics with a restraint that is devastating. She does not reach for dramatic heights. She does not need to. There is a quiet power in the way she delivers lines about attachment and uncertainty, a power that comes from understanding that sometimes the most profound statement is simply the willingness to be honest. When she sings, you believe her. That is not a small thing.
The collaboration between KOLE and Blue Capricorn, the project of Dallas-based Mexican-Argentine artist Rodrigo Caraballo-Marin, was years in the making. “When I met LOREN a few years ago, I knew I wanted to work with her one way or another,” Caraballo-Marin recalls. “While we were getting to know each other, I had realized that LOREN and I shared a lot of the same interests in music, most commonly the feeling that music gave us and what we hoped to communicate through our own work.” That shared philosophy is the invisible architecture of “honest.” You can hear it in the way their voices intertwine, not in perfect harmony but in something more human. You can hear it in the way the song breathes, allowing space for both artists to exist without competition. It is a rare thing, this kind of partnership, and it deserves to be celebrated.
The song itself evolved over a year and a half, shaped by personal and creative transition. “Throughout a year and a half, it felt like this song had lived a life because it had evolved into something so pure and precious to us,” Caraballo-Marin explains. “The more we spent time on it, the more I realized that ‘honest’ really is nothing more than a song about vulnerability and accepting failed love. I think working with LOREN also helped me dig deeper into that certain headspace, and she had also really played a big role in finding an accessible musical ambiance that spoke to us both sonically.” That role is evident throughout the track. KOLE does not simply add her voice to a finished product. She helps shape its emotional core, finding the textures and tones that make the song feel like a shared confession rather than a solo reflection.
“honest” arrives as the third track from “when you come back, transcend me,” Blue Capricorn’s forthcoming second EP, due October 15, 2026. It is a strong indicator of what is to come from Caraballo-Marin, but it is also a powerful statement from LOREN KOLE. She is an artist whose contributions elevate everything she touches, and on this track, she has helped create something truly special. For longtime fans of her work, “honest” is another reminder of why she matters. For those discovering her for the first time, it is an invitation to pay attention. She is not just a collaborator here. She is the reason the song lingers long after the final note fades.