Jessie Murph controls the crowd with her Priscilla Presley presence and charged lyrics. Her influence at the ACL Live Moody Theatre was unmistakable as she and her dances took the stage Tuesday, July 29th.
Jessie Murph combines a hip hop cadence with bluesy vibrato and country twang. She sings of heartbreak and deception in her sophomore album Sex Hysteria, which came out July 18th. The 20 year old has amassed a following after her song “Blue Stripes” got popular on TikTok.
After her US tour, she will travel to Europe and end in Australia. While the singer’s appearance is sweet, it was a stark contrast to how ugly the emotions behind her lyrics are. She sang of abuse and betrayal while a large crowd of young girls reflected every word back. Each girl wore the relief that only comes from being understood on their faces. It was impossible not to notice how much they related to the lyrics.
“I will not be a fool, but for you I might do what dumb bitches do, put on a dress, say, ‘fuck it’ instead. Follow my heart from my place to your bed” from Bad As The Rest.
The album describes the intensity of a young and unstable love – the cycle of losing and gaining hope in a lover’s potential to change. Jessie Murph has received much criticism online for her lyrics “promoting domestic violence”, but it is important to question why young love and volatility are synonymous and why so many young girls are relating to the content of her lyrics. While turbulence isn’t necessary for passion, Jessie is not the first or last bad girl to make good music.
I am a student at Texas State studying Digital Media and Psychology. I am always carrying my camera with me, it feels like my true voice. Some of my favorite artists are Courtney Barnett, Tainy, Frank Ocean, Art Lown, Fleshwater, Turnover, SZA and Wynton Kelly. Central Texas always has talented people passing through and I try to catch as many shows I can. I really love fashion, part of the fun of going to a concert is seeing what the artists wear on stage and everyone's outfits in the crowd. I tend to use musical elements in my fashion photography, the two are so intertwined to me. I also love to read and run, but not always at the same time.
