Songfacts®:

• As a mixed-race singer-songwriter (her mother is of Irish descent, her father of African), Monique DeBose straddled two worlds and often adapted to fit in. This song is a reaction to those times when she hid certain aspects of her personality to suit the company.
  
  The song also takes a broader look at self-acceptance. "With my song 'Damaged Goods,' I wanted to really convey the message that we as humans do not exist as perfect, and that it is our imperfections that make us good," she said on the Songfacts Podcast.
• Explaining the line "white collar prison" in the lyric, DeBose says it's a reference to "women who feel they're presenting on the outside an inaccurate depiction of who they are on the inside. Somebody who has privilege in their world, but still feels trapped by that privilege."
• The brother songwriting duo Isaac and Thorald Koren wrote this song with DeBose. They also contributed to her song "Rally Call."