Hilary Roberts is turning one of the most difficult chapters of her life into a deeply personal message of self-worth with her new single, “Cutting Ties”, which is out now alongside its official music video. The piano-driven ballad marks a new chapter in Roberts’ recent music, following the release of her “Never Too Late” EP earlier this year.
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Written by Damon Sharpe and Hilary Roberts, whilst it was produced by Sharpe with Sam Wills handling mixing and Trevor Muzzy handling mastering, “Cutting Ties” is built around piano-led instrumentation and takes a more intimate and emotionally exposed approach, allowing Roberts’ powerful vocal performance to sit at the centre of the track. Heartfelt, honest, and flawless, Roberts doesn’t hold back, delivering absolutely stunning vocals that enrich the production and bring every feeling within the song to life.
Her voice effortlessly moves between vulnerability and strength, creating an immediate connection that makes the song feel deeply personal while still allowing its message to reach a much wider audience. Its stripped-back ballad style gives the vocals room to breathe, creating a reflective atmosphere that feels deliberately different from the more uplifting material she has shared previously.
As the song unfolds, “Cutting Ties” centres on the difficult process of recognising when a relationship has become damaging and finding the strength to step away from it. There is a sense of reflection running through the track, with Hilary Roberts using the ballad format to explore what it means to reclaim your identity after spending too long being made to question your own worth. Rather than turning its subject matter into an angry confrontation, the song gradually shifts its focus towards the possibility of moving forward once those ties have finally been broken.
For Roberts, the subject matter is particularly personal. The song was inspired by her own experiences of emotional manipulation and abuse within her family, transforming those experiences into a piece of music centred less on anger and more on healing, self-respect, and freedom.
“‘Cutting Ties’ was written after the last straw of horrible abuse within my family,” says Roberts. “This song is for anyone who has tolerated abuse in any form for too long and finally has to walk away to be free from the toxicity. When someone who has experienced trauma and codependency chooses to cut ties, it’s an act of self-preservation. This song is about being brave enough to choose self-love, self-respect, and self-protection.”
While “Cutting Ties” comes directly from Hilary Roberts’ own experiences, its subject matter extends beyond one particular relationship or personal story. The song speaks to the wider experience of recognising unhealthy patterns, setting boundaries, and understanding that choosing your own wellbeing can be an important part of moving forward.
It also continues an important thread running through Hilary Roberts’ music in recent years. Her June 2026 single “Never Too Late” centred on recovery, reinvention, and the belief that it is never too late to change direction, before the song was expanded into a three-track EP featuring the original recording, a VIP Mix, and a Candlelight Mix.
With “Cutting Ties”, however, that message of transformation comes from a considerably more vulnerable place.
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Hilary Roberts Brings “Cutting Ties” To Life
The accompanying music video, directed by Eden Gamliel with Marti Boncacas acting as director of photography, brings the story of “Cutting Ties” to life through a series of striking visual metaphors, beginning with Hilary Roberts trapped inside a glass dome and restrained by cables. The imagery immediately establishes a sense of confinement, reflecting the manipulation and emotional control at the heart of the song, before the narrative gradually begins to shift as Roberts moves towards breaking free. A yellow dress becomes an important part of that progression, symbolising a return to life as she leaves the darkness behind and begins reclaiming a sense of herself.
The contrast between the video’s two worlds further develops that idea, with one representing toxicity and the other offering a glimpse of what exists beyond it. As Roberts moves away from the confines established at the beginning, the visuals open up into expansive landscapes, where she appears in flowing white clothing that represents healing, peace, and the reclamation of her identity. The change in setting and styling gives the video a genuine sense of progression, allowing viewers to see the journey from restriction to self-discovery rather than simply being told about it through the lyrics.
That journey reaches its most striking point in the final scenes, where Roberts stands confidently within the wings of a butterfly mosaic. The butterfly provides a fitting final image for a song about leaving one chapter behind and becoming something different on the other side of it, bringing the video’s visual story to a close with a clear sense of renewal. Rather than functioning simply as a backdrop for the track, the video adds another layer to “Cutting Ties”, translating its themes into a visual journey that develops from confinement and control towards peace and a reclaimed sense of identity.
Hilary Roberts Shares Her Story Through Music
Hilary Roberts has spent much of her career turning personal experiences into music centred on recovery, resilience, and hope, making “Cutting Ties” a natural continuation of the story she has been sharing through her artistry. Her journey has included childhood abuse and trauma, addiction, recovery, and significant health challenges, with May 9, 1997 marking the beginning of her recovery journey. Those experiences have continued to shape both her creative work and her commitment to helping others who have faced their own difficult circumstances.
That connection between personal experience and helping others extends beyond her music through the Red Songbird Foundation, which Hilary Roberts founded to support survivors of sexual, physical, and verbal abuse. The organisation provides access to counselling, treatment, and support groups, giving another dimension to the themes of self-protection and recovery that appear throughout her work. In that sense, “Cutting Ties” sits within a much wider mission for Roberts, where sharing her own story can also create space for others to recognise their experiences and find a path forward.
EXCLUSIVE: Hilary Roberts Talks “Cutting Ties”
With “Cutting Ties” drawing directly from Hilary Roberts’ own experiences, we spoke to the singer-songwriter about the story behind the song, the symbolism within its music video, and the difficult process of breaking away from abusive relationships. Roberts also opens up about how sharing her truth through music has changed the way she sees her past, revealing why creativity has become such an important part of her own healing.
“Cutting Ties” is described as one of your most vulnerable releases to date. What was it like turning such deeply personal experiences with abuse and healing into a song, and was there a particular moment when you knew you were ready to share it with the world?
I had learned to keep secrets in my family. If I tried to say something, there would be consequences, or I would be labeled as ridiculous, a drama queen, overreactive, or hypersensitive. So I learned to tolerate the intolerable. I questioned my own reality and took on what they thought of me. I learned to keep it all inside to feel safe and avoid being abandoned.
For children, abandonment can feel like death. There are so many people who were abused in every possible way as children and then enter relationships as adults, confused as to why those relationships resemble what they grew up with. When I started to recognize those patterns and heal from that dynamic, it was a total game changer. It became important for me to cut ties with people who continued to abuse me and then made promises that it wouldn’t happen again, claimed they didn’t remember, said it was just a joke, criticized my reaction to the abuse, or came back with presents and gifts.
Cutting ties was my way of saying, “I’m done. I will protect myself, and I am more important than allowing you to continue abusing me.” I cut ties because I choose me. And one last note: I didn’t just disappear. I sent them letters explaining exactly why those relationships were over.
The music video uses some striking visual symbolism, from the glass dome and cables to the yellow dress and butterfly mosaic. What do these elements represent to you, and how did you approach translating the song’s message into a visual story?
The dome and the cables represent being tied down in the cycle of abuse. You try to escape, but you cannot. For me, I’m crying out, tied down within that dome. You see my higher self trying to get me to come out, trying to get me to see that I’m worthy, trying to show me that I’m lovable, and trying to save me. The yellow dress represents a point where I can see the new world and the old world. I have started to break free, and I’m beginning to have moments of clarity and see freedom, though I’m still tethered to two worlds: one where I’m a prisoner and one where I walk with strength.
Then you see me in white, and that is where I have completely broken free. I’m smiling at the end of the video because I have finally found peace, which is the greatest gift after living in hell. The brilliant woman behind this concept is our amazing video director, Eden Gamliel.
The song centres on choosing self-love, self-respect, and self-protection after experiencing toxic relationships. What do you hope someone who is currently struggling to walk away from an unhealthy situation takes from “Cutting Ties”?
For anyone reading this, I would say: Don’t be so cruel to yourself for not doing better. It’s only when we truly know better, deep within, that we can do better. We can know it with our minds, but it takes time for that understanding to reach our hearts. Sometimes we don’t want to see it. When the blinders finally come off, it can be very painful to detox from these trauma-bonded relationships.
For me, I would say, “I’m never going to deal with them again,” and then I would go back into the cycle of abuse. I would tell myself that this time it would be different. Breaking free from these types of abusive relationships is so difficult, and I did it step by step. I would falter, and then I would start over, step by step, until I was finally done. Make sure you have safe people and resources around you who can help you make a plan to walk away, or, in some cases, safely get away.
Your music has often connected your personal journey with messages of hope, recovery, and resilience. As you look at where you are today, how has sharing your story through music changed your relationship with your own past?
I carried so much shame, which I made every attempt to keep hidden as best as possible. It’s freeing to tell the truth and to sing the truth. I think when we use creativity to express our emotions, it’s so much healthier than trying to anesthetize our feelings, which only works temporarily. We can also process our feelings in the midst of creating, which has certainly been the case for me.
My incredible producer and co-writer, Damon Sharpe, has witnessed me process so much throughout the years. He is one of my safe people and part of my chosen family. Some of the topics we’ve worked on, especially lately, are things I never would have talked about publicly before. Now I do because I don’t carry that shame anymore. And quite frankly, it wasn’t mine to carry. Music has literally saved my life.
“Cutting Ties” Is About Choosing Yourself
There is a clear sense of progression between “Never Too Late” and “Cutting Ties”. While “Never Too Late” explored the possibility of starting again and embracing a new chapter, “Cutting Ties” looks more closely at what can be required before that chapter can begin. Sometimes moving forward means recognising what is holding you back and finding the courage to let it go, even when doing so is difficult.
For Hilary Roberts, that process becomes an intensely personal ballad about reclaiming control, recognising your own worth, and learning to protect yourself from relationships that have caused harm. The song does not suggest that walking away is simple or that everything immediately becomes easier once those ties have been broken. Instead, it acknowledges the uncertainty and difficulty involved while ultimately finding hope in the decision to put your own wellbeing first.
That message gives “Cutting Ties” a meaningful place within Hilary Roberts’ recent music, while allowing the song to stand firmly on its own. Through both the music and its accompanying visual story, she turns painful experiences into an honest reminder that choosing yourself can be the first step towards finding peace, rebuilding your sense of identity, and beginning to move forward.
“Cutting Ties”, by Hilary Roberts, is available to download and stream, right now, across all platforms, via Red Songbird.
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