Appealing to pop performers, jazz musicians, and even a section of the melodic rock crowd, the music of Daryl Hall & John Oates is incredibly enduring. In talented hands, their work takes on new life, often sounding like something written for the performer in question.
Never was this more true than in the case of jazz/adult pop singer Lael Summer. Lael originally recorded a version of Daryl & John’s 1976 cut ‘Do What You Want, Be What You Are’ in 2013, and its been given a new lease of life in 2025 with the help of a smart and subtle remix. With the help of The Lael Project, the keys are layered with a slightly phasered feel, the stabs of melody dropping between the vocal giving off a slightly underwater vibe. This doesn’t make the recording sound at all unnatural, however; it merely adds a slightly spacier element to an arrangement that already felt pleasingly mellow, and the steady rhythms still punch through the blanket of sound with a solid sound. Regardless of any musical embellishments, it’s Lael’s vocal that really shines. Capturing a late night air, though never dropping into a cheesy easy listening tone, she mixes soul and jazz influences to share a massive cry. She sounds great throughout, but it’s when reaching the climax of the number with its “you can change” repeated refrain that the power in this performance really becomes clear. In many ways, it sounds more like something penned for a female jazz artist than for Hall & Oates themselves.
The Lael Project have paired this remix with a new mix of a 2012 album track ‘Make You Whole’. As heard on Lael’s debut album ‘Burden To Bear’, the song takes root with a soft piano melody, allowing the vocal to take centre stage. Falling somewhere between the work of an R&B chanteuse and a jazz-pop singer, the melody has elements that can be traced back to Roberta Flack and a couple of the great Prince ballads; those keeping a closer ear might even hear a sprinkling of Gregg Alexander’s ‘Just Missed The Train’ lurking within the chorus melody. In its original form, it’s a great track. Given that the track was already pared down, the new mix is very subtle indeed. The piano sounds a little more prominent – a little brighter – and the harmony vocals are a touch louder, but the core of the original track holds firm. If you’re hearing this for the first time, it’s certainly going to play very naturally.
Both tracks can be heard below. This double A-side provides a great introduction to Lael’s work for the unfamiliar, and a pleasing addition to her sparse catalogue for those who already love ‘Burden To Bear’, but it’s not just an ordinary digital release. It’s been used as a vehicle to place a spotlight on suicide awareness and mental health issues. More information can be found in the full press release which follows.
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Warning: Contains references to suicide and mental health struggles.
This September, in recognition of Suicide Awareness Month, The Lael Project is proud to release their posthumous remix of the late New York soul/pop singer-songwriter Lael Summer’s shimmering cover of the Daryl Hall and John Oates classic ‘Do What You Want, Be What You Are’, out today, September 16th 2025. Produced by longtime collaborators Tomás Doncker and James Dellatacoma, the track brings new life to one of Lael’s most celebrated performances – a song that, even a decade later, embodies her spirit of raw honesty, courage and vulnerability.
The track was first released in 2013, creating an immediate buzz with outlets like EarMilk, Big Takeover, Kings of A&R and SoulTracks praising Lael’s artistry and authenticity. Doncker recalls the song’s origins vividly: “I remember we were sitting at the kitchen table in her family’s loft in TriBeCa, NYC, brainstorming about album concepts, scrutinising lyrics, and writing the songs that would become Lael’s debut album ‘Burden To Bear’. Lael was always a good songwriter, but her forte was finding the commonality in her deeply personal lyrics – yet another reason why her work still resonates so passionately and powerfully today. We knew we needed a classic soul/R&B cover to flesh out the album… and we ultimately decided that Hall & Oates’s blue-eyed soul anthem ‘Do What You Want, Be What You Are’ was perfect for what Lael wanted to say. She could definitely hear herself in the song and especially the lyrics. I believe her stellar vocal performance explains why, when it was originally released, it was met with rave reviews, with many critics claiming Lael Summer was ‘The One To Watch’. In many ways, she still is…”
Lael’s journey was tragically cut short when she died by suicide in 2017 aged 24, but her music continues to inspire and connect. One of Lael’s guiding beliefs was simple yet profound: “If I can help just one person through my music, then I’ve done my job.” That mission is now carried forward by The Lael Project, founded by her mother, Marla Mase, to honour Lael’s life and use her art as a catalyst for suicide prevention, healing, and hope. The remix’s release during Suicide Awareness Month is not only a celebration of Lael’s artistry but also a call to action: to live true to oneself, to support one another, and to speak openly about mental health.
Alongside the track, The Lael Project are also releasing its double A-side single ‘Make You Whole’, written for and dedicated to her friend W, a girl Lael met in a residential treatment centre in Tucson, Arizona when they were both 13. Lael spent 3 months there for anorexia, depression and suicidality in the summer of 2006, the summer before Lael would be starting LaGuardia HS (The “Fame” school) in NYC as a vocalist.
On her thoughts on the song’s subject matter, Lael’s Mother, Marla Mase explains, “Lael wrote the song in 2013. It was a letter for W, who had discovered in treatment, that she was being sexually abused by a member of her family. This remembering triggered psychoses in W and Lael was greatly affected/impacted by this manifestation of W’s suffering. However, over the years, the song has come to hold many meanings for me. Sometimes, it feels like Lael is singing about herself. Other times I hear it as her apology for having left us and for causing her family and friends pain. But mostly, I hear the song as a reflection/testament to Lael’s deep compassion and empathy for all those that harbor secrets, pain and shame, for whatever reason, and her sincere, passionate wish that no one had to suffer, and if she ‘could she’d pick the pieces up and make us [all] whole.’ She really felt the pain of the world.”
Suicide is the second leading cause of death in the United States among those aged 12-18, and the leading cause of death in the UK in men under 50. Multiple studies have found that people who experienced child sexual abuse were three times more likely to attempt suicide later in life, and that it is an incredibly significant risk factor for suicidal ideation and attempts. Whilst The Lael Project are releasing these singles in honour of September’s recognised Suicide Awareness Month, September 10th in particular is World Suicide Prevention Day, a day incredibly close to Marla’s heart, because it can be prevented.
“The release of this song comes at a really powerful moment in history. Suddenly I think about all of the girls who were abused by Epstein. How, right now, there are many powerful forces trying to keep their voices, their stories, silent. Lael and The Lael Project is letting these girls – and all who have been abused, hurt and shamed – know that they are not alone, we are with them 100%. They are not forgotten. No this song wasn’t written for that, but right now all those survivors need to know that so many of us care about what happened to them. This is for them. This is an anthem for all who are harbouring secrets, and for all who aren’t believed. We decided to release this track for Suicide Awareness Month and as more and more voices are being silenced, as more and more secrets and histories are being shoved back into the darkness, re-written and erased, we thought it’s time to say NO. We remember, we know, we believe you, we stand with you. Together all of our broken pieces make up a very powerful whole.”
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Though her life was tragically cut short in 2017, her voice and vision live on – through her recordings, through those she touched, and through The Lael Project, which carries her mission forward.
“By sharing Lael’s story / our story (mental illness is a family ‘disease’), we hope it will give others the inspiration and courage to share their own. To let them know that they are not alone and that it is OK to open up, to speak and that there is no shame or judgement in what they are experiencing. There are billions of us out here ready to listen and to connect and that perhaps together we can pave a way towards healing. I am a firm believer in the power of storytelling. It is a path, I am sure, out of the darkness”, says Marla Mase.