GIRL IN RED DROPS “TOO MUCH”
BY DANY MIRELES (SHE/HER)Girl In Red talks about being “too much” on the new lead single.
Norwegian singer and songwriter Marie Ulven or as we know her, Girl In Red, has announced her sophomore album “I’m Doing It Again Baby!” coming out April 12th and released it’s main single “Too Much” this last friday . This song previews as to what we can expect from her new alternative album produced by Aaron Dessner and the singer herself.
The tracklist for the album was revealed alongside the lead single:
‘I’m Back’
‘DOING IT AGAIN BABY’
‘Too Much’
‘Phantom Pain’
‘You Need Me Now?’
‘A Night To Remember’
‘Pick Me’
‘Ugly Side’
‘New Love’
‘★★★★★’
Marie Ulven said that all throughout her childhood and adulthood she has always been told she was “too much”, saying how she thought it was weird to be told to ‘shut down’ whenever she was excited about something, making the norwegian singer feel weird and it brought self consciousness into her life. This made her realise how it actually hurt her feelings to never truly accept herself.
The music video of the lead single was directed by Fiona Burgess and produced by Smuggler. The music video follows Ulven expressing her love while she receives nothing back, at the beginning of the music video, we see Girl In Red trying to place her head on her partner’s shoulder, then being rejected by a disgusted face because of the action, we also see her protecting her partner from the rain, and the person not only does not share the umbrella, but dedicates herself to looking at her cellphone. Not caring about Marie’s suffering. The whole music video seems to be taking place as a theatrical play, having astonishing and eye capturing dance sequences, until it reaches the end, making it seem it was all in Ulven’s mind.
The song embraces Marie’s vulnerability and details about an emotionally unavailable love interest, however this song is nothing like a heartache and heartbreak anthem, it talks about minimising your emotions and having that self awareness whenever someone makes you feel self conscious about being “too much” . The song is laced with girl in red’s brilliant songwriting, accompanied by her famous guitar sounds that are mixed with an alternative sound. The lyrics provide a depiction of Girl In Red’s desire for validation and love while also realising that the relationship she finds herself in is unhealthy. The chorus of the song demonstrates the acceptance and understanding that the singer is pleading for, she doesn’t want to be seen as “too much” or to be labelled as someone who is “over the top”. The song’s overall explores the feeling of being invalidated from someone who cannot appreciate who you really are, how self conscious it makes one actually feel to not be seen by a person you love and understanding in the pursuit of fulfilling relationships.
The song has a great message, it led me to think about the importance of accepting who you really are, and to not feel ashamed of being “too much”, and how someone is a bad person when making someone feel weird about being excited about something. Girl in Red’s lyrics never fail to amaze and be relatable as many of her songs are. Showing raw vulnerability, girl in red perfectly encapsulates a journey of self acceptance. This is definitely an anthem as anyone who is trying to balance love and self discovery. It is a reminder for one’s desire of love and acceptance, highlighting the vulnerability that comes with sharing your true self with another.