I Do This All The Time speaks to the pressures women feel to meet societal expectations
BY HARRIET ARGENT
Rebecca Lucy Taylor, better known as singer Self Esteem, has released her single I Do This All The Time alongside a brand new music video, and we are here for it.
I Do This All The Time is a part spoken-word ode to the frustrations and societal norms that cloud expectations of “correct” womanhood, and the video is the first in a series of self-directed visuals shot at The Almedia Theatre.
The video begins with a close-up of Self Esteem as she looks down the camera with a powerful gaze that makes you feel compelled to listen to what she has to say.
The song’s lyricism speaks to the fear of comparison that is so common in the age of social media, particularly for women. At one point in the video, Self Esteem acknowledges this pressure as she begins to cradle someone that looks like her.
“The video is the first chance to spot one of the many easter eggs for Self Esteem purists as well as the rather on the nose metaphor of me hugging myself – much like Elton John in the movie rocket man does,” she says.
As she cradles herself, she is urging herself to prioritise her pleasure and to stop placing so much weight on getting married and having babies, and it feels like she is conveying something we all need our inner selves to hear.
Self Esteem’s debut, Compliments Please, holds a similar message around feelings of insecurity and misogyny-induced frustration that many of us face every day, and the musician revealed that all her upcoming work will be similar in the way it explores how complicated it is to just be human.
“I’m wonderful, and I’m terrible. I hurt people, and people hurt me. I feel everything and nothing,” she says candidly.
Unapologetic in her lyrics and art, the music video for I Do This All The Time is a representation of Self Esteem’s power, ending with her dancing with the elation of being free from societal expectations.
On top of releasing a new single and music video, Self Esteem has also announced an 18 date UK headline tour, which she promises will be a space for both catharsis and euphoric celebration. She’ll be stopping at venues across the country, including London’s Heaven and a hometown show at The Leadmill in Sheffield.
UK 2021 TOUR DATES
30 July – Camp Bestival, Dorset
8 August – Get Together, Sheffield
1 November – Fleece, Bristol
2 November – Wylam Brewery, Newcastle
3 November – Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff
4 November – O2 Academy, Oxford
6 November – The Bongo Club, Edinburgh
7 November – Audio, Glasgow
9 November – The Workmans Club, Dublin
10 November – Gorilla, Manchester
11 November – Belgrave Music Hall
12 November – The Leadmill, Sheffield
14 November – Norwich Arts Centre, Norwich
15 November – Sub 89, Reading
16 November – The Joiners, Southampton
17 November – Heaven, London
19 November – Elsewhere, Margate
20 November – Patterns, Brighton
23 November – Phoenix, Exeter
24 November – Hare & Hounds, Birmingham
25 November – Metronome, Nottingham
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