Released on July 14, 2023, Jess Tenace’s new single “selfish little girl” is a reflective track on self depreciation and how it affects oneself and the people around them. With heavy layers of instrumental electricity, Tenace’s clear vocals dive deep into wells of memories she herself is reflecting on through her turbulent past.
With tasteful reverb and dynamic beat shifts, this aching ballad consistently transforms into an empowering pop song. The intimacy of the beginning of the track stays constant, but the multiple layers fill the emotional space with growing intensity. Just when you think you know where the song is going to live, it switches up- as does the rhetoric of being a “selfish little girl.” Tenace takes back her power each time the music intensifies- modeling maturity and growth through painful circumstances, albeit self inflicted. The repetition of the song title allows the meaning to change as the person in question grows from a small and young confused, lonely girl into a powerful woman who sees a bigger picture of herself in her relationships.
Transporting listeners to the early 2000s pop scene with a modern edge, “selfish little girl” is a song that encompasses many emotions and a range of feelings for many versions of life.
