"Free Yourself"
Single by Jessie Ware
from the album That! Feels Good!
Released19 July 2022 (2022-07-19)
Genre
Length3:54
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Stuart Price
Jessie Ware singles chronology
"Kiss of Life"
(2021)		 "Free Yourself"
(2022)		 "Pearls"
(2023)
Music video
"Free Yourself" on YouTube

"Free Yourself" is a song recorded by English singer-songwriter Jessie Ware, released on 19 July 2022 as the first single from her fifth studio album, That! Feels Good! It was written by Ware, Clarence Coffee Jr. and the song's producer Stuart Price.

Background and release

"Free Yourself" is Ware's first single since the 2021 release of the extended Platinum Pleasure Edition of her most recent album What's Your Pleasure?.

During her headline set on The Park stage at the Glastonbury Festival 2022, the song was debuted. It was later premiered on 19 July 2022 as the "Hottest Record in the World" on BBC Radio 1's Future Sounds show.[1]

In a statement released to the press following the song's release, Ware said that this track "is the beginning of a new era" and that she's "so excited for people to have this song for the end of their summer; to dance, to feel no inhibitions, and to feel joyful because that's how I've been feeling recently being able to tour again and being able to sing again".[2]

Four remixes of the single were subsequently released. The first was by Paul Woolford and was released on 12 August 2022.[3] The second was by Eats Everything and was released on 19 August, subsequently being listed alongside the original track for a limited edition 7" vinyl release on 22 April 2023, Record Store Day.[4][5] The third was by the Alias and was released on 16 September.[5] The fourth was by Melanie C and was released on 3 November.[6]

The Paul Woolford and Eats Everything remixes were used in the "Be Who You Wanna Be" interval act of the Eurovision Song Contest 2023.[7]

Production and composition

A predominantly Italo disco-house track, "Free Yourself" is produced by Stuart Price and co-written by Ware, Price and Clarence Coffee Jr. of the production team the Monsters & Strangerz.[8] In an interview with Clara Amfo following the song's premiere on BBC Radio 1, Ware mentioned how she was initially hesitant to work with Price due to "being in a bubble with James Ford" (who she had worked with previously for What's Your Pleasure?).[1]

Strong keyboard stabs reminiscent of the diva house[8] genre start off the song, before building up and being accompanied with a selection of strings, brass instruments and drums, all acting as a background to Ware's vocals. The refrain of the song urges the listener to "hold steady through life's turbulence": "Keep on moving up that mountain top [...] If it feels so good then baby, baby don't you—stop."[9]

Music video

The music video for the single was released on 8 August 2022 at 5pm GMT. It was directed by Vicky Lawton, who had previously directed the videos for previous singles "Save a Kiss" and "What's Your Pleasure?".[3] The video sees Ware sport an "extravagant ruby red dress",[4] leading a congregation of dancers at a stately home through a ritualistic lecture of self-love and appreciation.[4]

In an interview with Little Black Book, Lawton described the video as "very '70s rock 'n' roll, but with a pinch of the occult thrown in. Knowing I'd want to make the tone provocative, I needed to ensure there was the class and sophistication in the visuals to keep it chic. That meant keeping mystery and intrigue at the forefront, using references of decadence, silhouettes to tease and a heavenly glow throughout." Rob Jarvis was the director of photography for the shoot and Lawton described working with him as a "delightful experience".[10]

Critical reception

The song was generally well received by critics.

George Griffiths from the Official Charts Company said the single "bursts out of What's Your Pleasure's [sic] shadow, as it should do" and that "this is a track clearly inspired by several motifs; CeCe Peniston, Erotica-era Madonna ('Deeper and Deeper' especially) and Studio 54 as the rent ran out and they were closing the shutters for the final time".[8]

Wren Graves from Consequence said that the song "opens with marching keyboards that add an air of drama before the beat drops",[11] whilst Tomás Mier from Rolling Stone described the lyrics as "sexy" and the chorus as "infectious [and] funky".[12] Pitchfork's Eric Torres calls the single "a sauntering floorfiller [...] eventually spinning out into a delirious breakdown in its last minute".[9]

The song subsequently went on to feature in various year-end rankings, including Pitchfork in their "The 100 Best Songs of 2022" list at number 49, with Jesse Dorris adding the track "takes Ware's blend of '70s disco and '80s boogie and shimmies it ecstatically into the '90s [...] without losing an ounce of charm."[13] Billboard also added the song to their "The 100 Best Songs of 2022: Staff List" at number 33[14] and "The 50 Best Dance Songs of 2022: Critics' Picks" list[15] with it being described as "uncut dancefloor mania".

Select year-end rankings
Publication List Rank Ref.
Pitchfork The 100 Best Songs of 2022
49
Billboard The 100 Best Songs of 2022: Staff List
33
The 50 Best Dance Songs of 2022: Critics' Picks
N/A
Gorilla vs. Bear Gorilla vs. Bear's Songs of 2022
15
Popjustice Popjustice £20 Music Prize Pending

Track listings

Digital download[20]

  1. Free Yourself – 3:58

Digital download - Paul Woolford Remix[21]

  1. Free Yourself (Paul Woolford Remix) – 3:01
  2. Free Yourself – 3:59

Digital download - Eats Everything Remix[22]

  1. Free Yourself (Eats Everything Remix) – 4:03
  2. Free Yourself (Paul Woolford Remix) – 3:01
  3. Free Yourself – 3:58

Digital download - The Alias Remix[23]

  1. Free Yourself (The Alias Remix) - 3:12
  2. Free Yourself – 3:58
  3. Free Yourself (Eats Everything Remix) – 4:03
  4. Free Yourself (Paul Woolford Remix) – 3:01

Digital download - Melanie C Remix[24]

  1. Free Yourself (Melanie C Remix) - 5:11

7" single[5]

  1. Free Yourself - 3:58
  2. Free Yourself (Eats Everything Remix) – 4:03

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from YouTube.[25]

  • Jessie Ware – vocals, songwriter
  • Stuart Price – producer, songwriter, recording engineer, mixer, background vocals, piano, bass, guitar, keyboards, drums
  • Clarence Coffee Jr – background vocals, songwriter
  • Stuart Hawkes – mastering engineer
  • Atlantic Horns – horns

Charts

Chart performance for "Free Yourself"
Chart (2022–23) Peak
position
UK Singles Downloads (OCC)[26] 33

References

  1. 1 2 "BBC Radio 1 - Radio 1's Future Sounds with Clara Amfo, Jessie Ware Hottest Record". BBC Radio 1. 19 July 2022. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  2. ↑ Deville, Chris (19 July 2022). "Jessie Ware Shares New Single "Free Yourself": Listen". Stereogum. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  3. 1 2 Free Yourself (Paul Woolford Remix), retrieved 12 August 2022
  4. 1 2 3 Free Yourself (Eats Everything Remix), retrieved 19 August 2022
  5. 1 2 3 Free Yourself (The Alias Remix), retrieved 27 September 2022
  6. ↑ Free Yourself (Melanie C Remix), retrieved 3 November 2022
  7. ↑ Farren, Neil (10 May 2023). "Live From Liverpool: Eurovision 2023 Semi-Final Two Jury Show". Eurovoix. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 Griffiths, George (19 July 2022). "Jessie Ware's Free Yourself finds joy in emancipation". www.officialcharts.com. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  9. 1 2 Torres, Eric (19 July 2022). "Jessie Ware: "Free Yourself"". Pitchfork. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  10. ↑ "Vicky Lawton Captures the Spirit of Rock 'n' Roll for Jessie Ware's Liberating 'Free Yourself' Video | LBBOnline". www.lbbonline.com. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  11. ↑ Graves, Wren (19 July 2022). "Jessie Ware shares new song "Free Yourself": Stream". Consequence. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  12. ↑ Mier, Tomás (19 July 2022). "Jessie Ware Delivers Disco Dancefloor-Ready 'Free Yourself'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
  13. 1 2 "The 100 Best Songs of 2022". Pitchfork. 5 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  14. ↑ "The 100 Best Songs of 2022: Staff List". Billboard. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  15. ↑ "The 50 Best Dance Songs of 2022: Critics' Picks". Billboard. 14 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  16. ↑ "The 100 Best Songs of 2022: Staff List". Billboard. 7 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  17. ↑ "The 50 Best Dance Songs of 2022: Critics' Picks". Billboard. 14 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  18. ↑ "gorilla vs. bear's songs of 2022". GORILLA VS. BEAR. 4 December 2022. Retrieved 14 December 2022.
  19. ↑ "The 2023 Popjustice Twenty Quid Music Prize: a shortlist". Popjustice. 27 July 2023. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  20. ↑ Free Yourself, 19 July 2022, retrieved 12 August 2022
  21. ↑ Free Yourself (Paul Woolford Remix), 12 August 2022, retrieved 12 August 2022
  22. ↑ Free Yourself (Eats Everything Remix), 19 August 2022, retrieved 19 August 2022
  23. ↑ Free Yourself (The Alias Remix), 16 September 2022, retrieved 27 September 2022
  24. ↑ "Jessie Ware - Free Yourself (Melanie C Remix)". Apple Music. 3 November 2022. Retrieved 3 November 2022.
  25. ↑ Free Yourself, retrieved 19 July 2022
  26. ↑ "Official Singles Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 29 September 2023.
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