R&B newcomer Bryant Barnes has released his new single “Don’t Want a Love Song” via Mercury Records/Republic Records. Barnes co-produced and co-wrote the song with Jhune, along with Jackson Monroe.
On the melancholic ballad, driven by an acoustic guitar, Barnes laments about the void left by unrequited love.
“I don’t really want a love song / ‘Cause you have my heart, don’t tear it apart / And you don’t really wanna love someone / Am I not enough to be what you want? / Why can’t you love me anymore?” he croons.
Barnes first teased “Don’t Want a Love Song” in a TikTok post in late December. “Coming very soon,” he wrote in a caption for a video of singing the song while playing an acoustic guitar. The video has over 460,000 likes to date.
“Don’t Want a Love Song” is the follow-up to Barnes’ 2023 songs “Adore You” and “Losing You.” The former track is Barnes’ debut single, which was reissued with an acoustic version.
The Houston native, who has over two million followers on TikTok, grew his following with viral piano covers of songs by Brent Faiyaz, Mac Miller, Joji and more. His cover of XXXTENTACION’s “Carry On” caught the attention of Mercury Records, which led to him signing with the label in 2023.
Stream “Don’t Want a Love Song” by Bryant Barnes below.