Seletute – Lean | ThisisAGTV

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“Lean” Into The Light With Seletute Katalina

Seletute (“Tootie”) Katalina has seen her world come apart. And not just her own world. The world. Our world. Tootie saw relationships hewn in half. Witnessed loved ones perish. Dreams dashed on rocks. What’s more, Tootie knows that you have seen those things too. With her new single, “Lean,” Tootie brings a votive of hope into the swirling storm around us.

“I connected with [‘Lean’] because I found that the ultimate message of it was a healing that people need to hear,” said Tootie. “There are plenty of songs that talk about division or what experience you’ve been through.” Tootie continued, “I wanted to put out a word of healing and unity. It’s a hopeful song. We are going through a difficult time, but there is hope at the end.”

Tootie’s manager, Lilo, fell in love with the song’s ability to provide meaning to the anguish of anyone who heard it. “[‘Lean’} speaks directly to the sufferer,” said Lilo. “It’s a message for the person who is suffering. It says, ‘I see you. I hear you. I feel what you’re feeling.’” Suffering remains a common lot for all of humanity. “Lean” tells us that suffering unites us. With that knowledge, we can bolster one another. “We wanted someone to apply ‘Lean’ as though it was written just for them,” Lilo said. “But it isn’t just to the one sufferer. It’s a song that speaks to the masses.”

“Lean” both mourns and celebrates the lives of departed loved ones. In the regal music video for “Lean,” viewers notice the hashtags #moose, #davi, #vai, and #ray. “Moose was my uncle,” said Tootie. “But he was much more like a brother. I basically raised his kids. He passed away last year at the prime of his health. It was an unexpected heart attack.” “Lean” grieves not only individual losses, but communal losses as well. Explaining the other 3 hashtags, Tootie said, “Here in the Utah Polynesian community, many young mothers became widows. Ray, Vai and Davi were all young fathers who lost their lives. They left behind widows with children all under 10.”

Production for the “Lean” music video demanded ardor and faith. Lilo recounted the tenacity of those who helped make the video a reality. “Our resilient ballerina is the only African-American ballerina dancing at Ballet West in Salt Lake City, Utah,” Lilo said. “She was dancing outside in zero degree weather. Bingham High school took 1st place in their home state. We had 4 of their best dancers in the video. It was hours and hours of reshoots, rerecordings. Making sure the location was right. It was a lot of sacrifice from everybody.”

“Lean” proclaims that it’s time for kings and queens to rise up. To carry one another’s burdens. Just like Simon of Cyrene helped carry the burden of a Nazarene carpenter. Seletute Katalina will release more singles during the summer months. Look for tour dates to be released around the same time.

“For fans old and new,” said Seletute Katalina, “be more cautious and courteous to one another. Allow others to lean on you. And, have the courage to lean when you are in need. There could be no better time to be a part of the human race. Everybody truly does have the power to make a difference to just one soul. Even if that soul is your own. Honey, lean.”