Music Review // Stephanie June "Cry Baby Cry"

Stephanie June has given me the reminder that I should watch the movie "Cry Baby" one more time but this song does not make me want to cry.   This song is a lot of fun and upbeat, what others might refer to as a bop.   If it just doesn't make you want to get up and dance around then I'm not sure you're listening to it at a loud enough volume.   There are elements of Corinne Bailey Rae in here but I don't feel like there are a lot other artists to compare this with, which is nice because it gives Stephanie June a pop genre all her own.

During this music video, Stephanie June starts off inside but then sees a group of people outside with a sign saying to come dance/walk with them.  She goes outside to join them and it just looks like so much fun.  It is perfect how much fun this video looks though because this song has so much good energy.  It also feels like with the way the world is shaping now, within the United States at least, things are opening back up after the pandemic and so this is an appropriate anthem to play when you get back out there.

Lyrically this song is really interesting because it's upbeat and seemingly happy but then you have the chorus- and title- which says to cry, which makes me feel like it's sad.   I enjoy lines such as "Like taking drugs for the first time" because I think we've all been there but it's one of those ideas of once you do something you can't undo it-- you only get one first time and then at some point in your life you might run out of firsts.  But then the lyric: "If we're all gonna die I'd rather do it by your side" makes me think that perhaps the crying in this song is tears of joy rather than sorrow.  

Regardless of whether or not you want to read into the lyrics to think of this as a song which celebrates crying when you're happy (which is something we need to normalize) "Cry Baby Cry" is just a positive note in the world of music.  It's a ray of sunshine and with summer upon us and life getting back to where it once was, I just feel like this should be played as you leave the house and begin going to the beach or whatever outdoors happy activities you might engage in.  This could be the hit of the summer if people just got on board.