Vera Farmiga might be one of our favorite scream queens, but she’s also a rock star… literally. She’s a part of the alt rock band The Yagas, who just debuted the video for their latest single, “Runaway” — no, not the Bon Jovi song — featuring ‘80s-inspired synths and plenty of headbanging melodies.
In addition to Farmiga, The Yagas also consist of Renn Hawkey, Jason Bowman, and Mark Visconti, having come together in late 2024. Hawkey produced “Runaway” along with Brian Virtue, with the song “[imploring] the listener to run like hell toward wherever makes you feel happier, freer, healthier, because love is reason enough to run.”
The new music video, directed by Sam Reiss, features The Yagas as the house band of an old asylum, with Farmiga taking the starring role as a former patient making a daring escape as the walls close in around her. The style is no different from any of their other horror-inspired work, including their debut album Midnight Minuet, which premiered in 2025, and is their first single since last September’s “Illusion,” which featured in Farmiga’s film The Conjuring: Last Rites. Since their debut, The Yagas have amassed over 35 million collective streams and video views.
But don't just take our word for it; music publications like Metal Addicts also sing The Yagas' praises, writing, “The Yagas craft a unique sonic identity — melding classic rock roots, modern synth textures, and deeply poetic lyricism that traverses melancholy, urgency, and beauty […] In an era where reinvention is less a choice and more a necessity, Farmiga and The Yagas don’t just reinvent — they leave a lasting imprint.”
And their latest song, “Runaway,” comes from a very personal place for Farmiga.
“This song stems from a time long ago when our young child’s autism diagnosis had left Renn and I frightened and full of questions,” Farmiga says of the song. “Now, 16 years later, our daughter has opened our hearts and changed the way we see the world. She has brought more light and joy into our lives than we could have imagined. Being her parents is one of the great privileges of our lives. We can finally hold both truths in the same song: the fear we felt then and the light we see now. We’re releasing ‘Runaway’ now because we finally understand where we were going – toward her, toward each other, toward joy.”
“‘Runaway’ is a love song invitation,” she added. “The longing is universal: to want to leave behind whatever made life feel unpredictable, dark, or small and run toward, you name it, illumination, compassion, something more sane. It’s for anyone who has ever looked at the special person beside them and thought, ‘What if we just left?’ There’s no grand plan. Just two people grabbing one another’s hands and running like hell toward sunlight, laughter, and a place where the world makes sense and feels bearable again.”
“Runaway” is available to stream now wherever you get your music, and you can watch the music video above.
