I've written before about the talent of Mary Lambert, the singer/songwriter best known for writing and singing the chorus of Macklemore and Ryan Lewis' hit single "Same Love." Now, Mary Lambert has a new single and it's one of the happiest, most inspiring pop songs to come out in a long time. "Secrets" is a whole lot of confessions about Mary's personal life. The song plays on the monotony of the modern anthemic pop song to subvert the form for a stronger message.
There's a sing-song quality to confessions that would typically be shamed or taboo in modern American culture. Just look at the first few lines of the song:
I've got bi-polar disorder My shit's not in order I'm overweight I'm always late I've got too many things to say I rock mom jeans, cat earrings Extrapolate my feelings My family is dysfunctional But we have a good time killing each other
So before we even reach the pre-chorus, Lambert discusses mental health, weight, being outspoken, unfashionable clothing, talking too much about yourself, and family unrest. She doesn't dwell on any single subject. She throws it out there. If you hate it, so what? She beyond caring at this point.
They tell us from the time we're young To hide the things that we don't like about ourselves Inside ourselves I know I'm not the only one who spent so long attempting to be someone else Well I'm over it
She declares that she doesn't care if the world knows her secrets and responds with "So what?" The chorus is singing "So what?" over and over.
It helps that the video is one of the cutest, bounciest things I've ever seen.
Mary Lambert is carving a niche for herself as a positive, forward-thinking, inspirational pop artist. We need that. We need a strong person like Lambert to remind people of all ages that your life is yours to live. If you're happy, then it doesn't matter. And if you're not happy, you deserve to be.