BILLYD3VINE Turns Up The Emotion On New Single Not Fair

By Chris Kennedy | Published 17th Sept, 2026

Following the release of his debut single Baby Blue back in July, BILLYD3VINE has quickly started to make a name for himself within Ireland’s growing indie-folk scene.

A multi-instrumentalist with a talent for combining guitar-driven indie and alternative influences with personal, honest songwriting, BILLYD3VINE has already shown plenty of promise. His music has a rawness to it, but there’s also an atmospheric quality that gives his songs plenty of room to breathe.

Now he returns with his latest single, Not Fair, and this time around he turns up the alternative edge.

The track starts quietly, with gently plucked acoustic guitar and BILLYD3VINE delivering the opening vocals in a hushed, almost intimate style. There’s a sense that something bigger is coming, and as the song progresses, atmospheric layers begin to creep into the mix.

Thick piano chords add weight to the arrangement, while the delicate guitar eventually gives way to a much rawer strummed sound. It’s a gradual build, but one that works particularly well.

And then everything changes.

When Not Fair hits the chorus, the track completely opens up. The restrained verses give way to a much more powerful sound, driven by the repetitive and instantly memorable hook of you can do better.

It’s here that the emotion running underneath the song really comes to the surface.

Lyrically, Not Fair deals with the feeling of losing yourself while the people around you fail to recognise what you’re going through. The song begins by looking back at memories of being fun, confident and full of life, before gradually revealing the isolation, frustration and disappointment that can come with feeling abandoned by people you once trusted.

That contrast between the quieter verses and the more explosive chorus is one of the track’s biggest strengths. Rather than giving us everything from the start, BILLYD3VINE allows the tension to build before finally letting it all out.

There’s also something refreshingly honest about Not Fair/. It doesn't feel overly polished or detached from the emotion at its centre. Instead, the acoustic guitars, atmospheric production and increasingly intense vocals give the song a sense of vulnerability that suits its subject matter.

Following Baby Blue, this feels like another step forward for BILLYD3VINE. While the indie-folk foundations are still there, Not Fair shows that he’s not afraid to push his sound into darker and more alternative territory.

Final Verdict

Not Fair is an impressive follow-up from BILLYD3VINE. Starting as a quiet acoustic slow burner before erupting into an emotionally charged chorus, the track successfully captures the frustration and isolation at the heart of its lyrics.

There’s plenty of potential here, and if Baby Blue introduced BILLYD3VINE to the Irish indie-folk scene, Not Fair suggests there could be considerably more to come.

The single, Not Fair, is available through all streaming platforms.

Photo Credit: BILLYD3VINE