Song Deconstructed: ‘Short Story’ by Michi ft. Dunkan

Michi: “One thing I’ve learned as a songwriter is that simplicity is often underrated.” Photo: Marina Borshchenko

What began as flirtation over drinks became a lesson in hooks, danceable grooves, and turning temporary romance into something memorable

Michi is the stage name of Michelle Raymond, an American songwriter who has spent the past decade making songs about love, lust, break-ups, and the strange business of being human. Originally from Virginia and now based in Madrid, she has performed with her band Michi & the Cats at Washington D.C.’s Capital Pride Festival for nine consecutive years, sharing stages with artists including Miley Cyrus and Carly Rae Jepsen.

Her music sits somewhere between indie folk and the classic singer-songwriter tradition: intimate, conversational and with a well-developed taste for the absurd. Short Story is the first single from her second album, also called Short Story, due in October, a record built around the romances that last a lifetime and those that emphatically do not. It all began with an unexpected conversation over drinks. Here, Michi explains how a throwaway remark became a song…

INSPIRATION

Short Story started with a flirtatious conversation over drinks. I was out in Madrid with a woman I’d recently met, and we were talking about relationships. At one point, I asked her what she was looking for. Her answer completely caught me off guard. She said she wasn’t really interested in relationships. She was more interested in short stories. I couldn’t stop laughing.

I’d heard people talk about flings, one-night stands, situationships, and casual romances before, but I’d never heard anyone describe them as “short stories.” It was such a clever way of framing something temporary. The phrase stuck with me immediately.

Around the same time, another cliché kept bouncing around my head: ‘We were meant to be…’ It’s one of those phrases people use when they’re talking about soulmates and forever love. I started imagining it paired with her comment and couldn’t help laughing at the contrast:

We were meant to be… a short story.

That line kept replaying in my head for days. Eventually it became the hook of the chorus and the foundation for the entire song. What attracted me to the idea wasn’t just the humour of it. It was the truth behind it. Not every meaningful connection is supposed to last forever. Some people enter your life for a brief moment and still leave a lasting impact. I wanted to write a song that celebrated that idea instead of mourning it.

LYRICS

The chorus arrived almost immediately. Once I had the phrase, “We were meant to be a short story,” the rest of the song became an exercise in building a world around that concept. Rather than writing about heartbreak or longing, I wanted to capture the excitement of two people fully aware that whatever is happening between them has an expiration date.

The song is essentially a conversation I’m having with the woman I’m trying to seduce. There’s a playful tension running throughout the lyrics. I’m not promising forever. In fact, I’m doing the opposite. Lines like “Don’t say a word, no expectations,” and “Do not get attached to me,” are deliberately direct. The narrator is inviting someone into an experience while being honest about its limits.

One thing I’ve learned as a songwriter is that simplicity is often underrated. I tend to trust songs that people remember quickly. One of the ways I know I’m onto something is when listeners can sing a chorus back to me after hearing it only once.

Every time I’ve played Short Story acoustically for someone, by the final chorus they’re already singing along. To me, that’s one of the strongest indicators that a song is working. If people instinctively know where the melody wants to go and feel comfortable joining in, you’ve created something memorable.

The Spanish verse was equally important. It was never intended as a translation of the English lyrics. I wanted it to feel like another perspective entering the same story. Each language brings its own rhythm and personality, and I think songwriting becomes much more interesting when you allow that to happen naturally instead of forcing a line-by-line translation.

Michi: “One of the ways I know I’m onto something is when listeners can sing a chorus back to me after hearing it only once.” Photo: Marina Borshchenko

MUSIC

Although I come from a singer-songwriter background, I didn’t want Short Story to feel like a traditional acoustic folk song. The track was built around rhythm and movement. I wanted people to feel like dancing before they started analysing the lyrics. The acoustic guitar is still there, but instead of sitting quietly underneath the song, it’s driving the groove, creating an energetic, danceable pop track. Similar to the melodic DNA of Ed Sheeran’s Shape Of You, but with acoustic guitar woven through the groove instead of marimba.

One of my favourite songwriting tricks is to contrast lyrical content with musical energy. The song is about a relationship that’s destined to be temporary, but the music feels euphoric, playful, and carefree. That tension creates something more interesting than simply matching the mood of the lyrics.
Melodically, I was chasing accessibility. I wanted the chorus to feel inevitable, as if listeners had already heard it before. That’s often my goal when writing hooks. The best choruses don’t feel complicated. They feel obvious in hindsight.

IN THE STUDIO

The song was produced by Anto Vaquero, who also played bass, synth, and handled the mixing and mastering. One of the things I enjoy most about recording is discovering the moments that weren’t planned. A song may begin alone with an acoustic guitar, but once other musicians start contributing, it becomes something bigger than what you originally imagined.

Recording Dunkan’s feature was one of the highlights of the entire project. The song was already written and produced, but I knew it needed another perspective. Since the track plays with desire, temptation, and living in the moment, I wanted the featured verse to feel like another character stepping into the same scene rather than simply adding a guest appearance. Dunkan wrote and performed his verse entirely in Spanish, which brought a different energy to the song. One of my favourite lines is, “Tú protagonista de mi short story” (You’re the protagonist of my short story).

Up until that point, I’d written the song from the perspective of the seducer. I’m the one pulling someone into this fleeting romance, telling them not to get attached and to enjoy the moment for what it is. With a single line, Dunkan flipped the entire dynamic. Suddenly I wasn’t the huntress anymore; I was the hunted. I thought that was incredibly clever, and it gave the song a layer that hadn’t existed before.

Michi: “A song may begin alone with an acoustic guitar, but once other musicians start contributing, it becomes something bigger than what you originally imagined.” Photo: Marina Borshchenko

FINAL THOUGHTS

Short Story became the first single from my second album, a project that took on an entirely new life after I was laid off from my job in December 2025. Instead of immediately updating my CV and throwing myself into another job search, I picked up my guitar and decided to bet on myself for a while.

I launched a Kickstarter campaign and shared the vision for the album with friends, family, and my community. In just 30 days, more than 200 people helped raise over $20,000 to bring the project to life. That support gave me the confidence and resources to keep creating at a moment when I could have easily chosen a different path.

And speaking of stories, I should probably give credit where credit is due…

The woman whose comment inspired the song has a hidden tribute in the album cover artwork. Her name is tucked away in the design as a small thank you for unknowingly giving me one of the best song ideas I’ve ever had. Most will never notice it, but I know it’s there.

If there’s one lesson I’d pass on to other songwriters, it’s this: pay attention to the sentences that make you laugh, make you pause, or refuse to leave your head. Sometimes a great song doesn’t begin with a grand artistic concept. Sometimes it begins with a flirtatious conversation over drinks and a phrase so good you wish you’d said it yourself.

Michi’s single Short Story is out now, and the album of the same name will follow on 13 October. Find out more at linktr.ee/michi.music

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