Mahalia isn't one for holding her tongue, and that's not changing in this new year. The British singer started the year off with her frank song "Letter To Ur Ex." Now she continues to have her say in 2022 with her latest track "Whatever Simon Says."
What's remarkable about this one is that it finds Mahalia taking on the oppressive beauty standards and societal norms that woman have to face. Rather than complain about them, though, she uses the track to shirk them entirely.
The song is set to a deceptively mellow groove of keys and steady drums that belies the message she's trying to get across. "I've never been the kind of girl to welcome your interest / I heard that you like a little black dress, so I wear red," she sings at the song's start. "I've never been the kind of b***h to ever let a b***h get in my head / So you should just say less / Never done what Simon says."
"Everybody who knows me knows that I definitely don’t follow social norms and s***ty beauty standards," Mahalia said in a statement about the song. "I’ve always been someone who has never let people try to change me - especially my romantic partners. This song is about wanting it to work with someone but knowing it ultimately can’t because their expectation of what type of woman I should be is just far too high."
She also gives us the same sentiment in the song's video. The clip shows Mahalia from the neck up as she goes through her self-care regimen. As she uses her serums and elixirs, she sings the song's lyrics into the mirror. The camera never expands beyond the tight close-up on her face, subverting the expectations of fancy outfits and glamour that we've come to expect from most videos.
We're never mad when an artist makes a statement with their work, and Mahalia does just that here. Check out "Whatever Simon Says" and its video right here.
