Music Review: Jessie J "Who You Are"

Jessie J

Who You Are

Album: Who You Are

Year:  2011

           Jessie J won’t let society’s impossible standard of beauty get to her in the           concerned “Who You Are.”

            A musing guitar opens the single, setting a She tilts her head to the side. There is a little row of blackheads on her chin. She takes out the concealer and all her cosmetics on the counter. She considers making an appointment with the dermatologist, maybe taking some medication. After dabbing the spot with makeup, she puts it down and heaves a sigh. The pimples are out of her control. It’s not something to freak about it and change her entire face over. (“I stare at my reflection in the mirror/Why am I doing this to myself?/Losing my mind on a tiny error/I nearly left the real me on the shelf.”)

                In the chorus, she tells people accept their flaws. The models and celebrities on the magazines are airbrushed. It’s not even real. People shouldn’t buy into it. The perfect body doesn’t exist. Everyone wishes they could change something. People shouldn’t have to harm themselves to look a certain way to be accepted. (“No, no, no, no, no/Don't lose who you are in the blur of the stars!/Seeing is deceiving, dreaming is believing/It's okay not to be okay/Sometimes it's hard to follow your heart/Tears don't mean you're losing, everybody's bruisingJust be true to who you are!/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are/Who you are.”)

                   Then she touches her hair. It’s so stringy and she can’t do anything with it. She gets out the hairspray, trying to get a piece of hair that is sticking up down. She pats and then combs it again. Yet, it’s still there. It seems even more noticeable now. She tells herself it’s not a big deal. (“Brushing my hair, do I look perfect?/I forgot what to do to fit the mold, yeah!/The more I try the less it's working, yeah/Cause everything inside me screams.”)

                   The second chorus is sung. (“No, no, no, no, no/Don't lose who you are in the blur of the stars!/Seeing is deceiving, dreaming is believing/It's okay not to be okay/Sometimes it's hard to follow your heart/Tears don't mean you're losing, everybody's bruising/There's nothing wrong with who you are!”)

             In the bridge, people commenting on her appearance, giving her backhanded compliments bother her. She can’t deal with her people who focus on their appearance, valuing it over their relationship and those who have a lot of plastic surgery done. She likes people who are themselves and talk about their lives, rather than what they look like. (“Yes, no's, egos, fake shows, like whoa!/Just go, and leave me alone!/Real talk, real life, good love, goodnight/With a smile, that's my home!/That's my home.”)

          An edited chorus ends the single. (“No, no, no, no, no/Don't lose who you are in the blur of the stars!/Seeing is deceiving, dreaming is believing/It's okay not to be okay/Sometimes it's hard to follow your heart/Tears don't mean you're losing, everybody's bruisingJust be true to who you are”)          

         Jessie J’s porcelain vocals are finely cut with a bold design. The crack in her voice during the chorus, which could be considered a major flaw, actually backs up the song’s message. Usually, it’s corrected. However, it’s kept in, giving her heartbreaking plea a rawness that doesn’t exist.

                The emotional “Who You Are” means what it says.