“I’m not guilty / so why do I feel guilty?” Doe Paoro passionately pleads on the empowering ballad off her upcoming third record. The single serves as an anthem for all women who’ve been silenced and have struggled to find their voice in a man’s world.
The arresting track chronicles the gamut of emotions experienced when placed in a compromising position. “‘Guilty’ is about the internalized blame, self-hatred, and guilt that victims often must contend with (sometimes, for years) following a perplexing, undermining, shameful encounter involving an abuse of power,” Paoro says. “This song is my story.”
Produced by Jimmy Hogarth (Amy Winehouse, James Blunt, James Bay), “Guilty” displays vulnerability and strength, with Paoro’s powerful and anguished vocals at the helm, while jazz influences beautifully bring it all together including gentle key strokes, a rhythmic bass line, and vocal harmonies.
“I wish I could un-know what it’s like to have my body made a battlefield” sings Paoro.
“I blamed myself and forgot who was in control/
I’ve walked to deep inside a Man’s world.”
Being pushed and pulled in different directions, the song is ultimately about cutting all ties, returning to self, and beginning again.
Paoro composed the song in October 2016 – at the very last minute, just a few days before recording her new album. “I had delayed working on it because of the resistance, fear, and overall heaviness that I faced within myself when it came to putting words to an experience that had left me feeling, quite honestly, voiceless.”
“So much of the album is about reclaiming parts of myself that I had lost,” explains Paoro. “It’s about being a woman, and what exactly that means at this particular moment in time.”
This International Women’s Day release the guilt, embrace your voice, support other women, and set yourself free.
Listen to Doe Paoro’s Guilty now:
