Loving The Real Light Inside Posted June 07, 2025 By BraddenFord_NRT, Staff Reviewer
What You Need to Know One of the most promising upcoming indie artists, Allison Eide, who has a deeply layered sound, has quickly gained a following over the past year. The former NCAA athlete began releasing music in 2018, with her breakthrough single, "Love Who I Am," in 2023. The song went viral across social media and streaming platforms, which put Allison as a leading voice in Christian music on mental health. She released the Love Who I Am EP in 2024 and followed it up with her debut full-length album by the same name in March 2025.
What It Sounds Like Love Who I Am is a deeply layered album that blends alternative pop, indie, contemporary, and even funk elements. Songs like "Still Afraid" and "Dreams" are especially notable for their alternative rock influence. Other songs, like "Slip Away" and the title track, are beautiful ballads, while "Liar (Truth Is)" is a funk and alternative rock banger that has already become Allison's second viral song. The album is a diverse mix of styles, with no filler tracks or radio-focused songs. The music is creatively made, with so much heart put into every aspect that it easily surpasses mainstream comparisons as one of the most solid Christian albums I've heard this year.
Spiritual Highlights Love Who I Am is a journey filled with honest prayer, confessions, and learning as I grow. Allison's struggle with mental health is beautifully shown throughout these songs. Topics like body image, suicide, addiction, depression, and self-doubt are told with the truth that we're not alone and how perfectly made in God's hand we genuinely are. Songs like "Love Who I Am" and "Slip Away" are prayers of brokenness to God that come back with a reminder of how personal God is to every heartbreak and every battle we face. He's always there and never afraid of the pain. He's genuinely a faithful father to us and is fighting for us. Even songs like "Liar (Truth Is)" are full-on diss tracks to the devil, which closes the album with bold confidence, standing on God's promises to us against the devil.
Best Song I love every song on this album, truly. It's easy to pick either of the two viral tracks, "Love Who I Am" or "Liar (Truth Is)" as a favorite (and very well deserved). However, my favorite track is the emotional anthem "Light Inside You." I had the honor of speaking with Allison about this song and the entire album (you can watch it here), where we discussed the song and why it matters to both of us. It's a beautiful song standing against sucidie and declaring over the listeners "I still see the light inside you, even when the dark is all you see, I feel the good that's in you, even when the world says you're nothing, not a single breath is wasted on you, so hang on." rom my story of sucidie and depression, this song hit me deeply with the reminder that God has so much in store in those dark moments. His story, which He is writing in our lives, is not over.
Bottom Line We often hear the desire for authenticity in music and songs that aren't just aimed at creating radio-friendly tracks. Allison's album is one of the many releases that are changing Christian music for the better. These songs are vulnerable, offering listeners of all ages a place of honesty with Jesus. This album is marked by healing, relatability, and high-quality production that rivals anything I've heard in mainstream music. Along with Allison's voice and beautiful songwriting, many of these songs have brought me to tears and served as anthems through the dark moments I've walked through. Love Who I Am establishes that Allison Eide is emerging as one of the most significant figures in Christian music, poised to become a leading female artist in the genre.
