British-Jamaican singer-songwriter Mahalia released her latest single, “Whatever Simon Says.” The song arrives as the follow-up to February’s “Letter To Ur Ex.”
Mahalia Calls Toxic Masculinity Out on “Whatever Simon Says”
Produced by JD. Reid, “Whatever Simon Says” is an empowering track. It invites women to be themselves and not be afraid of speaking out. In the song, Mahalia calls out oppressive behavior that men tend to have against women, as well as them wanting unrealistic beauty standards on their partners.
“Whatever, whatever am I gonna do with you If you like a girl that does what she supposed to do (Uh) and I don’t? Whatever, whatever am I gonna do with you? I’m not that kind of girl,” she sings in the chorus.
She Self-Directed the Music Video
“Everybody who knows me knows that I definitely don’t follow social norms and sh*tty beauty standards,” Mahalia says. “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. I feel like “whatever Simon says” is every girls ‘f*ck you’ to the system that has always been set up through a male gaze.”
She continues, “It’s us saying that we are going to be everything we want to be because we want it. And not because a man tells us to. We’re all fixated on how we can make ourselves better during and after this period of time. But I want people to also reminisce on lovely or painful situations they’ve lived through and how they’ve helped shape the people they are now.”
The song’s music video was directed by Mahalia herself and filmed in Los Angeles. In it, she acts natural and vulnerable, showing viewers that she really means what the lyrics of the song say.
If you like Mahalia, check out our article about Ellie Dixon!
