Bright

Album: You Should Be Here (2015)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • 20-year-old Oakland-based R&B singer-songwriter Kehlani sings here struggling with her identity and coming of age in a tough world. She told Billboard magazine the song was partly inspired by the posts she observes on social media. "It's just sad because I see it every day," Kehlani said. "I go on Twitter and I literally see girls posting a picture of one of the Jenners and writing something like 'OMG, my self esteem is gone' or 'Bye, I'm gonna go kill myself now.' That's no joke, you know what I'm saying? People really think like that. They look at hair books and they think that because their hair isn't straight, they're not pretty and they can't be anything. It makes me so sad."
  • The song was also inspired by things that upset Kehlani and made her feel like she wasn't worthy when she was growing up. "I didn't look like what everyone else looked like and I had all these tattoos," the songstress explained. "There are just so many things I've noticed that are wrong and had to be spoken up for, and I felt like the only way to get it across was through songs."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Mike Campbell

Mike CampbellSongwriter Interviews

Mike is lead guitarist with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and co-writer of classic songs like "Boys Of Summer," "Refugee" and "The Heart Of The Matter."

Donny Osmond

Donny OsmondSongwriter Interviews

Donny Osmond talks about his biggest hits, his Vegas show, and the fan who taught him to take "Puppy Love" seriously.

Carl Sturken

Carl SturkenSongwriter Interviews

Hitmaker Carl Sturken on writing and producing for Rihanna, 'N Sync, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson, Donny Osmond, Shakira and Karyn White.

American Hits With Foreign Titles

American Hits With Foreign TitlesSong Writing

What are the biggest US hits with French, Spanish (not "Rico Suave"), Italian, Scottish, Greek, and Japanese titles?

Mick Jones of Foreigner

Mick Jones of ForeignerSongwriter Interviews

Foreigner's songwriter/guitarist tells the stories behind the songs "Juke Box Hero," "I Want To Know What Love Is," and many more.

The Police

The PoliceFact or Fiction

Do their first three albums have French titles? Is "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" really meaningless? See if you can tell in this Fact or Fiction.