In honor of International Women’s Day, our latest Spotify playlist celebrates the angry, the unhinged, and the scorned. Here are the highlights of “odes to feminine rage”:
“Gaslighter” by The Chicks
Kicking off the playlist, “Gaslighter” tells the tale of a male manipulator who ruins his marriage. Serving as the titular track on The Chick’s first studio album since their almost 15-year hiatus, the song packs a punch with an unexpectedly bright tone. With their perfectly tuned harmonies and sharp, outspoken lyrics, it’s hard to believe the girl group ever took a break from the music scene.
With songs like “Gaslighter” and “Not Ready To Make Nice,” The Chicks have influenced listeners to call out injustice and turn devastation into strength.
“My Kink Is Karma” by Chappell Roan
Chappell Roan basks in the satisfaction of watching an ex-lover suffer the consequences of a bad decision on “My Kink Is Karma.” In the lyrics, she relishes in this ex having a meltdown and drinking to forget. She confidently sings, “Wishing you the best, in the worst way/Using your distress as foreplay.” Roan, knowing full well that her wish for her ex-lover’s misfortune is toxic, plays into the maliciousness.
Roan and her female-forward discography are encouraging women to dig for confidence within themselves.
“BITCH (takes one to know one)” by Lennon Stella
On this stand-alone single, Lennon Stella reclaims “bitch” by throwing it in the face of the men who still frequent the word. The song begins with a couple’s drive through Laurel Canyon in LA where the guy calls his girlfriend a bitch as a joke. He laughs when she cries and pretends everything’s fine around their friends. Of course, he doesn’t understand the repercussions of this, but instead of grinning and bearing it, she calls him one too and says “it takes one to know one.”
In one of the most recent releases on this list, Stella is empowering a new generation of listeners.
“Just A Girl” by No Doubt
Perhaps one of the most iconic girl power anthems of all time, “Just A Girl” mocks the false stereotype that women aren’t capable of taking care of themselves. Through her clever perspective, Gwen Stefani chips away at any notion of being delicate. She sings, “Oh, I’m just a girl, my apologies/What I’ve become is so burdensome.”
In poking fun at men’s perception of women, Stefani fiercely reassures her listeners that women can be their own protectors.
“King” by Florence + The Machine
“I am no mother, I am no bride, I am king,” is the mantra Florence Welch builds on “King.” The song encompasses a woman’s defiance of society’s expectations of her. Yet, this woman doesn’t feel pulled in either direction. She feels lost personally and creatively, as both priorities hinge on the other. Welch says in a Genius interview, “I was as good as the men and I just went out there and matched them every time. But now, thinking about being a woman in my 30s and the future, I suddenly feel this tearing of my identity and my desires.”
Florence + The Machine offers insight into a very real struggle between women’s ambition and building a family.
“You Oughta Know” by Alanis Morissette
No feminist list would be complete without the quintessential messy break-up song. “You Oughta Know” lives on to be the soundtrack for vengeful women. In Morissette’s raw masterpiece, she tells it like it is, explaining that “for women sometimes, we’re told we can’t be angry; we can’t be sad and we can’t be…17 other feelings. You can’t be anything. So just sublimate it all. Just squish it all down.” Morissette is the pioneer of female rage, but even more so of showcasing complex emotions through art.
It’s no question that Morissette has inspired female listeners to embrace their anger.
Head to Spotify to listen to the full playlist!
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