Weeks before its release, Paris Paloma’s upcoming teaser “Labour” is already spreading quickly - as is the message.
“All day, every day, therapist, mother, maid, nymph then a virgin, nurse then a servant, just an appendage, live to attend him, so that he never lifts a finger,” Paloma sings to the screen, hands covered in blood as she sits at a table set for dinner.
The short clip has amassed over 5 million views and 18k stitches - from users sharing their lived experiences and cultural depictions of how women, specifically in traditional heterosexual relationships, carry the emotional “labour” opposed to their partners.
Feminine Rage
The response to the “Labour” teaser - as with the many movements and protests and rhetoric surrounding being female in the 21st century - has ignited that ancestral, physiological feeling that is feminine rage. And I am not a man; because when men get angry - and oh, do they get mad - they scream and shout starting wars pounding their chests like the animals in jungles they hunted at a time that women were left to fetch water from rivers and berries from bushes as they carried their children on their backs. We are taught to remain silent and accept the burden of men and society in general as it has been done for millennia.
As Paloma explains, this archetype derives from “intersectionality and white supremacy”. White men.
The first definition for “man” is reserved for those who created the term: “an adult male human being”. To which I am not. The second, “a human being of either sex; a person”. That, I am. So, am I a woman first and a man second? A female before a human? Oh! But there’s a third definition, too: “(of personnel) work at, run, or operate (a place or piece of equipment) or defend (a fortification)”. I’m also a laborer. To get this straight:
First: I am a woman (female)
Second: I am a man (human)
Third: I am a worker (laborer)
Second in class, first to serve. We work to please and sacrifice our well-being to become better wives, mothers, and caretakers. Our body is a temple men pray to; where they seek confession for their sins but act upon them either way.
A Woman’s Role
“Labour” takes a stance on female empowerment against the dominant patriarchy. Because this is real. It’s happening. Abortion laws are being repealed. Domestic violence is on the rise. Underrepresentation in the political and corporate landscape. Racial injustice, particularly in partnerships.
This is not Paloma’s first feminist anthem. Since gaining a large following on TikTok, the British singer/songwriter has released numerous singles including “The Fruits”, “Narcissus”, and “Ocean Baby”.
Between poetic lyrics and rhythmic beats, each of Paloma’s songs is like a hymn to femininity; uncovering some ancestral reminder that a woman is more than the labels placed upon her.
She continues to tap into the horror of the female experience but inspires listeners all the same. And maybe if I stomp my feet the earth will shake - Mother Nature that is - because she, too, is angry.
“Labour” releases on March 24th on Spotify and YouTube.
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