One of my favorite things about music is the connection that is born when artists share their experiences through song. The biggest names in pop music often have the most relatable stories, and I love learning about the trials and tribulations that made them who they are. In honor of Women’s History Month, I’ve chosen four stories from women in pop music that I find super compelling. From heartbreak to addiction to poverty, these women have been through hell and have lived to sing about it.
Selena Gomez – Lose You To Love Me
“You promised the world and I fell for it. I put you first and you adored it. Set fires to my forest and you let it burn. Sang off-key in my chorus ’cause it wasn’t yours.”
I find the story of Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber fascinating. Their relationship inspired a media fervor the likes of which hadn’t been seen since Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake linked up in 1999. Though they met as teenagers, they were both already massive superstars in their own right, and the world was obsessed with their romance. Imagine being a young person growing up in the pressure cooker of fame and trying to maintain a meaningful relationship in the public eye. Mistakes were made. They broke up. They saw other people, then got back together. Cheating rumors flew. Diss tracks were made. It was a mess, to say the least. By the time they called it quits, Selena was a shattered woman, but she used the heartbreak to make some of her greatest music to date. “Lose You To Love Me” was such a beautiful response to the ending of that relationship. It demonstrated the spiritual growth that Gomez experienced, and highlighted her strength in letting go. It is a must-hear for anyone who has lost themselves in a relationship.
Jojo – Music
“Tell me who, who would I be without you? No matter how much we lose, every time I bet my life on you.”
In this song, JoJo gets autobiographical, touching on her parents divorce, her father’s addiction, and growing up poor. Throughout her life, music was the one thing that kept her going. It also became the singer’s career at the young age of 13, when she rose to fame with the hit single “Leave (Get Out)”. However, after two highly successful albums, JoJo became entangled in every artist’s worst nightmare: label drama. For over ten years, the singer fought legal battles against Blackground Records to win the right to release and perform her music. There were moments of despair where she thought she may need to give up on her dream, and she struggled with severe depression and alcohol abuse. Thankfully, Jojo made it out alive. In 2013, she was released from Blackground Records and signed with Atlantic. The song “Music” was the opener on her first full-length album with her new label, and it stands as a testament to Jojo’s devotion to the craft.
Ariana Grande – Off The Table
“Will I ever love the same way again? Will I ever love somebody like the way I did you? Never thought you’d be so damn hard to replace. I swear I don’t mean to be this way. If I can’t have you, is love completely off the table?”
Ariana Grande’s love life has been tabloid fodder for as long as the superstar has been in the business, but never so much as in 2018. This was the year she broke it off with longtime beau Mac Miller, citing his struggle with addiction as the reason for the split. She subsequently moved on with comedian Pete Davidson, and shocked the world when she announced that after just a few short months, the couple was engaged. However, the relationship wouldn’t last long. In September of the same year, Mac Miller died of an accidental overdose, and it became clear that Ariana had never truly gotten over him. Her relationship with Pete crumbled, and she went through a period of anxiety and depression that was reflected in her album “Thank U, Next.” Later, the singer would release “off the table,” a ballad that highlights the difficulties of moving on after the death of a loved one. What I find compelling about this story is the messiness of human relationships. As was the case for Ari and Mac, sometimes love is not enough to keep two people together. Sometimes you have to move on, however you can. And sometimes that means carrying your love for someone into your next relationship. The takeaway is this: If Ariana Grande can survive 2018, then we can survive anything.
Cardi B – Get Up 10
I went from rag to riches, went from WIC to lit, *****. Only person in my fam to see six figures. The pressure on your shoulders feel like boulders when you gotta make sure that everybody straight.”
From the first time I heard “Bodak Yellow” on the radio, I was obsessed with Cardi B. Though she isn’t the first rapper to go from rags to riches, there is something about her that I just find fascinating. The superstar grew up in a lower-class neighborhood in the Bronx, and she did what she had to do to get by. Specifically, she joined a gang and danced at a strip club to pay for community college. A different entertainer might try to downplay their involvement in such things, but Cardi B is proud of her hustle. Though she doesn’t encourage others to follow the same path, she doesn’t apologize either. In her own words, “I ain’t telling you to do it, I’m just telling my story.” Cardi’s authenticity is what makes her so compelling. She is best known for her larger-than-life personality and wild antics, but under it all, she is a survivor – someone who beat the odds and rose above her humble beginnings to make a name for herself. I hope one day she will write a memoir, because I know this woman has been through some real shit, and we can all take inspiration from her story.
Pop Apologist 