Breaking the Cycle: Sister Sadie’s Powerful New Single

a note from Ariel Rosemberg

Sharing a song like Sister Sadie’s forthcoming single, “Let the Circle Be Broken” on April Fool’s Day is somewhat paradoxical. While today is all about jokes and lightheartedness, this song is an honest, raw look at breaking the cycles of generational trauma and abuse, topics that unfortunately all too often goes unspoken. 

Deanie Richardson, the band’s co-founder and fiddler, co-wrote this song in response to nearly two decades of in-home abuse. “Let the Circle Be Broken” is out Friday, April 4. 

In Country music, it’s often called for the circle to remain unbroken, and so in this case, the breaking of our own circle only makes it stronger. The music, the vocals, the lyrics — each piece of this song tells that story. The haunting fiddle intro sets the tone, giving way to Dani Flowers’ soulful vocals that lean into the idea of liberation:

“Light some sage, say a prayer. Let those ties come untied.

Round and round, I won’t go. Take the light, leave the bones.

Let the circle be broken tonight.”

Deanie shared: “Dani Flowers, Erin Enderlin, and I wrote ‘Let the Circle Be Broken’ right after my dad passed away. He was an abusive man who verbally, emotionally, and sexually abused me for most of my 18 years living at home with him. When I confronted him as an adult, he said that it had been done to him as a child. This song is about the generational trauma and abuse that keeps getting passed down. The trauma and abuse stop with me. It doesn’t go any further.”

It’s heartbreaking how common instances like this are, and the courage to speak out with a refusal to carry that burden forward is something that deserves to be recognized. We all have our own circles to break — trauma, toxic patterns or anything in our lives that holds us back.

Although it had been performed elsewhere, “Let the Circle Be Broken” made its Grand Ole Opry debut on March 25, just last week, followed by a coveted Opry standing ovation. It was raw and real, and you could feel how much it meant. I managed to grab a video on my phone that I’d love for you to check out. It’s not studio quality, but it’s genuine and captures the moment. You may watch that right here.

If you listen to just one new song this week, I hope it’s this one. Not just because of the music, but because of the story and the person who had the courage to tell it.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and for supporting Sister Sadie. It means more than you know.