Coming Out — Jessie Paege

Artist: Jessie Paege

Title: Coming Out

Year: 2020

Composer: Jessie Paege, Evan Blum, & Grant Sayler

Genre: Alternative

To honor the experience of LGBTQ+ individuals, this selection addresses the troubles of "coming out" to loved ones as something other than a cisgender heterosexual. In the first verse, we hear the initial struggle between society's expectations of persons who are LGBTQ+. This includes manipulation through the (mis)use of religion as well as the internal guilt that arises when members of the community act in defiance of the harmful teachings they have been given. With time, comes the realization that no one needs to apologize for being themselves and wishing to express it: I won't apologize for anything I am / I won't apologize 'cause you don't understand. This mentality prevents people from hiding their true selves and liberates them from the prison society tries to push them into. In the second verse, Paege reveals she was seeing in black and white and, after coming out, is living in color. This is a nod to the rainbow flag that represents members of the LGBTQ+ community. It also represents her pride in her identity, a huge improvement from hiding herself and feeling guilty.

Connection to Playlist

In the playlist title order, this song correlates to Gold. For a song about coming out, I think gold really emphasizes the power that being freely your true self grants.

Resources

Genius, Coming Out - Lyrics, https://genius.com/Jessie-paege-coming-out-lyrics.

Jessie Paege, Coming Out, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lXWzdOKLHaQ.