Growing up often means discovering that not everything we once thought belonged to us actually does. Expectations, relationships, ambitions and even old versions of ourselves can fit for a while before suddenly becoming uncomfortable. Dutch singer-songwriter Lily Franc turns that familiar uncertainty into the central idea of her debut EP, The Fitting Room, a thoughtful six-track collection about identity, growing up and learning when it is time to let go.
At 21, Franc approaches the complicated transition into adulthood with an unusual combination of warmth, honesty and curiosity. Rather than presenting growing pains as a simple journey from confusion to clarity, The Fitting Room looks at the people we become while trying to understand what we actually want from life.
The title provides the perfect metaphor. A fitting room is somewhere we experiment with different possibilities, deciding what feels right before walking away with only what we truly want to keep. Across the EP, Franc applies that idea to expectations around achievement, love, relationships, emotional independence and identity.
The six songs each introduce a different perspective. “burnt out gifted kids club” examines the exhaustion that can come from making achievement part of your identity, while “fun sponge” approaches emotional detachment with a playful funk-inflected edge. “under the weather” explores the lingering weight of heartbreak, and “old leather jacket” gradually transforms a story of unrequited love into something more empowering.
Elsewhere, “soldier” considers what it means to support someone without disappearing inside their needs, while “for old times sake” provides a quietly moving conclusion. Nostalgia remains present, but Franc understands that remembering something fondly does not mean you have to return to it.
That emotional intelligence is one of the EP’s greatest strengths. Franc does not create obvious villains or easy answers. Her characters are complicated, imperfect and recognisable, each carrying expectations and insecurities that can make growing up feel both exciting and painful.
Musically, The Fitting Room is just as open-minded. Indie pop, country pop and folk sit alongside touches of Broadway and funk, while Franc’s classical violin training gives the project an identity of its own. Having played violin since the age of five, she incorporates the instrument throughout the record rather than treating it as a separate part of her musical background. It becomes part of the emotional language of the songs.
Franc’s development has already earned recognition in her native Netherlands. She studied at the Young Pop Academy at the Conservatorium of Amsterdam, won first prize in the music category at Kunstbende Overijssel in 2023 and took part in Metropool’s Songmidse talent programme in 2025. She has also been awarded the Universal Voice Institute’s fully funded study place for 2026 to 2027, an opportunity given to just one singer each year.
There are clear connections to artists such as Taylor Swift, Olivia Rodrigo, Dolly Parton, Carole King, Gracie Abrams and Joni Mitchell, but The Fitting Room does not feel like an exercise in imitation. Lily Franc is already developing a voice that feels observant, emotionally direct and distinctly her own.
Ultimately, the EP is less about finding a perfect identity than accepting that identity is allowed to change. Sometimes growing up means admitting that something you once wanted no longer belongs in your life.
And perhaps that is the real freedom of the fitting room. You get to try things on. You get to change your mind. And when you finally walk out, you do not have to take everything with you.
