Four and a half years was the timespan between Zahna’s debut release, Red for War, and her sophomore album, Stronger than Death—enough time for the artist to gain another “college degree” of life experience. While her diagnosis with a genetic kidney disease is lyrically introduced in her first release, Zahna’s subsequent journey through ultimate organ failure, followed by a complex kidney transplant, takes the thematic center stage in Stronger than Death.
Today, HM is proud to offer an exclusive look behind Zahna’s personal journey, which led to her latest release.
“Everything from beginning to end about this album was laborious; it was emotionally, mentally, financially, and physically taxing” the singer explains. “It felt like a child of mine that was perpetually waiting to be born, as if it would never happen. My character and strength of will have never been more tested in all facets, and I’m so glad to witness the culmination of the last four years in this release.”
When asked about the biggest take-away for fans and listeners from Stronger than Death, she comments:
“I want people to understand that their time is short; your life and what you do with it matters. And in a strange paradox, nothing matters at all, because love covers everything at the end of the day, and love is stronger than death.”
For those whom that statement intrigues, Zahna says the album chronicles her voyage across a series of realizations, from self-empowering belief in one’s purpose and strength, to its improbable counterpart, the utter emptying of the “self” to make way for a truer purpose.
The 11-track album breaks up into three parts—the first featuring topics like mental strength, the spirit of resilience in adversity, self-competitive growth, and the sheer willpower to arise and push onwards. These opening rock anthems are characterized by electrifying energy as they set an impressive precedent of quality for the entirety of the album. Tracks like “Death at Dawn,” “This is Your Calling,” and “Better Run!” were inspired by the singer-songwriter’s motivation to overcome her creative inhibitions, the barriers facing her in the music industry, and a crippling fear in undergoing a high-risk organ transplant operation.
The second act of the album transitions into poignant pieces of sorrow, isolation, pleading, and remorse derived from the artist’s personal experience. Songs like “Promise You’re Coming” and “Erase” grieve abandonment and reach near despondency, while songs like “I’m Sorry” and “Prayers in the Dark” cultivate a decisive hope and compassion from a place of humility.
Finally, the third movement brings forth a resounding theme of victory in contentment and gratitude. Comprised of songs that seek conviction of purpose paired with surrender to truth, this part of the album recounts the ultimate message of the journey: Love is in essence “stronger than death.”
Each of the works in the “story” of the album maintains its inspiration from the personal path of the artist. She notes, “‘Death at Dawn’ was a reminder to myself to persevere in my chosen career, to evolve and become capable of breaking through the noise to reach an audience. My disease warned me that my time was short, and the hour had come to throw all the chips in for the ride of a lifetime.”
The second track, “This is Your Calling,” aims to help listeners bring to remembrance their past triumphs in order to carry on in present trials. For Zahna, a prevailing promise of purpose had become the mental motivation to overcome the physical pain of surgery, as she describes in the second verse of the song.
“If I were a fighter, this was the song I would walk out to towards the ring. I needed a fight song to cope with everything I was about to medically take on and the way my life was about to change. Overcoming my trypanophobia [an intense fear of needles] was the hardest part. That’s why this song talks about physical pain, bleeding, and mental focus so much, because it’s obvious to me now how much [the latter] is a fundamental component of growth. I had to hold fast to my calling of writing music and being an artist. Many times, this belief in a sort of ‘personal destiny’ got me through the lows of my recovery, and encouraged me to survive and get well, so I could get back to what I do best.”
Zahna asserts that “Better Run!” is written directly in reference to those in power who prey on the weak or unknowing. “I had seen it happen so many times professionally in my career and life at that point; it was hard to ignore when transitioning into an independent artist. Psychologically, I had seen myself as weak for so long. Now add to the mix that my body was physically deteriorating, making that mentality worse.”
Zahna describes once more the conviction in her soul to overcome the corruption and prove adversaries wrong:
“I didn’t survive organ failure and my own personal hell just to deal with manipulators keeping me from my dreams, so this song is a warning to them. Never underestimate those you perceive as weak.”
Stronger than Death transitions into the second half of the album around song 4, slowing down into complicated musical and lyrical themes signifying death, decay, and doubt in the once defiant singer’s voice.
“‘Promise You’re Coming’” was a song I had in my back pocket for several months before I started tracking this album,” she states. “Being freshly married to another touring musician who was on the road while I was facing a looming kidney transplant and health crisis is a start to a marriage that I wish upon no one. There were many lonely nights and uncertainty as you miss your significant other’s embrace so much, and the yearning you have for them telling you that it’s going to be okay.
“I had seen music destroy so many relationships and marriages. I was so scared of it happening to me. Thankfully, my husband, who is also my co-writer and business partner, was so gracious to let me release this song to be transparent about the real vulnerability that love requires, and also as proof to the world that our love truly overcame some of the hardest challenges I never dreamed we would face as newlyweds. I truly hope that our reconciliatory outcome encourages other couples not to give up.”
Track 5, “I’m Sorry,” acts as the sequel to “Promise You’re Coming.”
“I wanted to write a song that deals with what I imagined my husband’s perspective was through the whole ordeal. I wanted this song to prove that there are no enemies in marriage. Everyone is dealing with their own baggage, doing the best they can. Of course abandoning a relationship over repairing it is always easier, but—spoiler alert! This album is not about doing easy things… it’s about love being stronger than death! If we are to honestly take that concept seriously, it’s important we take a second look at fragile or dying relationships.
“In hindsight, I’m so glad my husband and I stayed humble and came to each other in that posture, as I truly believe we would’ve ended up being two very broken individuals had we abandoned our relationship in pride. This song is an apology, and proof that love really is stronger than all things.”
Track 6, titled “Erase,” continues relating the hardship and turbulent state of mind the singer experienced before her and her husband’s reconciliation, diving deeper into the second phase of the album that explores profound darkness and loss.
“At one point, with how many complications and infections I was having, I was seriously regretting my transplant. My body felt worse than before. I remember writing ‘Erase’ after an intense cry session in the shower at the peak of my instability. I wanted so deeply to drown in that water, because, at the time, my financial, medical, physical, and spiritual problems seemed so overwhelming. I was such a mess. I started going as far as to wish I just died of kidney failure instead of fighting for what seemed so pointless. Fantasizing about the water just washing everything away was why ‘Erase’ was written with so many thematic water metaphors.”
Once again, Zahna employs her song sequel strategy with “Prayers in the Dark” as a response to “Erase.”
“How can you expound upon the theme of loss and defeat, hospital visit after hospital visit? Was it ever going to get better? In this song, you hear so many subtle and creative ways to describe someone being on the edge of committing suicide, just holding out for a glimmer of hope, and one reason to not go through with it. Was or is the song about me? Maybe. There were so many times I questioned God at this point, and there was no sermon or anyone that could tell me anything to move me out of despair.”
“I really only found comfort in one thought, which was that if God was omnipotent, then he must be aware of my situation. If He isn’t blind to my situation, I can hang on. Maybe there is a reason He hasn’t changed it yet. Are there lessons I need to learn? Is there a purpose in this pain?”
Zahna explains that this song goes out to anyone suffering in secret. She states that the message of the song speaks for itself: “He hears your prayers in the dark.”
As songs begin to hit new lyrical lows, the transition in Zahna’s message and personal metamorphosis thankfully comes full circle and sees the light of day after all. Track 8, an intense, dark-pop interlude named “Reaper,” ushers in the third and final phase of her cathartic album.
“I think that everyone has to come to a point where they must decide what they believe. They must decide if the horrible things they’ve experienced are just random, unselective chaos, or simply a part of the journey of their own personal destinies. When you make the choice to believe that your life and the things (good or bad) that happen in it have purpose, you start to understand that you have to keep living, to see what else is around the corner.
“As for the title of this track, ‘Reaper,’ I always had fun and coped by personifying death as a real character and a sort of ‘nemesis’ of mine. I imagine that if he were real, he’d be chasing me, like a debt collector, probably angry that I’ve cheated him a couple of times. We chose to include him in this song, and name it ‘Reaper’ since essentially, the song is a declaration of independence towards the havoc that fear wreaks in the lives and reality of people facing illness. There are so many reasons to decide to get healthy, and even more reasons to keep on living.”
“Reaper” aptly prepares the way for its successor and sequel track, “Die For Something,” which features the rich, deep voice of Patrick Madsen, also known as rising rock artist, Nesdam, and Zahna’s husband. The duet’s explosive chemistry is evident in this soaring arena rock epic.
Zahna states that “Die For Something” is for every person who has tried to find purpose and meaning through tragedy. “It’s crazy because how can someone be powerful when facing death? The fact that we are blessed with free agency to determine our attitudes towards our own deaths is beautiful and powerfully frightening,” she says in describing the meaning of the ninth track of the album.
“When you know you’re at the end, and at least want your death to mean something, it makes you begin to live larger and dream bigger. For me, using my pain to find purpose inspired a new attitude towards my current life, even if it was in shambles. Every day was a new opportunity to be alive and make your mark. It was like new realizations, revelations, and life were hitting me constantly. My body felt new strength and energy that I didn’t even recognize, as thankfully my new kidney was finally doing its job and restoring chemical balance to my body.”
In the end, as the 29-year-old singer’s body, mind and soul were healing, she came to a sobering realization about her purpose. “I began to realize my purpose was never actually to become some ‘musical legend,’ as my youthful motivation and purpose used to be. But I think through this whole journey, I came to realize how satisfied I was in leaning on my faith, and the treasure it is to be surrendered. Expressing this was my goal for the title track of the album, ‘Stronger than Death.'”
This song falls tenth on the track listing for a passionate stand before the finale. “Out of hundreds, it’s one of my favorite songs I’ve ever written. This song is my victory. It’s the final message that says ‘I have been through hell and near death, and I would face it all over again if it could mean experiencing the joy of finding God in every lifetime the way I have found Him in this one.’”
From a once-defiant voice grounding its thematic heels in survival, willpower, and vengeance, there comes a shift and complete transformation so evidently clear in the biblical scripture-littered song. The voice is still defiant, but in an unexpected way.
“When you have truly found the meaning of life, and divine love, self-seeking views become irrelevant. You’ve already found peace, and you embrace your mortality in this beautiful state. You’re just ready to see the other side and go home. You are ready to embrace your finite fate, because you’ve understood its true purpose. You would gladly die for this new-found eternal love.”
With this, Zahna takes her bow in the final album track: the ethereal ballad, “Anything But Destiny.” “You can say that ‘Anything but Destiny’ is the first song I ever wrote for this record. I started writing this song ten years ago, in my college dorm, having no clue that I would one day borrow the lyrics of the bridge to name an entire original album, in a future where I’m a recording artist with an actual audience… and I never expected this song would one day help heal my own self.”
Zahna further explains her past uncertainty with pursuing a music career:
“Every time I wanted to give up, the reason I didn’t was because music was always my compass and made sense to me. I had been in this too long not to believe in the progress I’d made. I’m so glad that I stayed with it. Whatever I am able to contribute to the world with this musical compass is already a gift. I am satisfied with the rest.”
As the final third of the album resolves all of the work’s thematic elements, the singer reminds her precious listeners: “Stronger than Death is a testament to what I’ve survived and am surviving, and how I wouldn’t be alive without my mom stepping in and saving me with her organ donation and sacrificial love.”
All throughout her art, Zahna asks the same existential question begging to be answered: “Without love, what are we? Can love really save us from certain death, physically? Emotionally? Spiritually?” Being ‘‘stronger than death,” she remarks, is a constant state that has become intertwined into every part of her life and belief system.
“It is a statement of beautiful gratitude, and for me, creating this album has been the most personal learning experience of my Christian faith. Love truly is stronger than death.”
