Stand for Myself
Studio album by
Yola
Released30 July 2021
StudioEasy Eye Sound, Nashville, Tennessee
Genre
Length46:18
Label
ProducerDan Auerbach
Yola chronology
Walk Through Fire
(2019)		 Stand for Myself
(2021)
Singles from Stand for Myself
  1. "Diamond Studded Shoes"
    Released: 22 April 2021
  2. "Stand for Myself"
    Released: 27 May 2021

Stand for Myself is the second studio album by English singer and songwriter Yola. It was released on 30 July 2021, through Easy Eye Sound and distributed by Concord Records. The album debuted at number 196 on the Billboard 200 chart and at number 46 on the UK Albums Chart chart, being her first entry on both charts. The album was nominated for Best Americana Album at the 2022 Grammy Awards.

Background

The album features various songs that Yola was trying to finish over the years. Recording took place in Nashville, where Yola had to locate permanently after the COVID-19 pandemic. Like her previous album, Dan Auerbach, guitarist and vocalist of the Black Keys, served as producer while songwriters such as Natalie Hemby, Liz Rose, Ruby Amanfu and Joy Oladokun also collaborated on the album.[6]

Promotion and release

On 22 April 2021, "Diamond Studded Shoes" was released as the album's first single, a music video for the song directed by Kwaku Otchere was released the same day.[7] On 27 May 2021, "Stand for Myself", the album's title track, was released as the second single. It was also performed on 21 July 2021, on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.[8][9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.5/10[10]
Metacritic82/100[11]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[5]
Mojo[12]
musicOMH[13]
The Observer[2]
Paste8.7/10[1]
Pitchfork7.4/10[14]
PopMatters8/10[15]
Rolling Stone[3]
Uncut8/10[4]
Under the Radar7.5/10[16]

Stand for Myself was met with widespread critical acclaim. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received an average score of 82, based on 11 reviews.[11] Aggregator AnyDecentMusic? gave it 7.5 out of 10, based on their assessment of the critical consensus.[10]

Reviewing the album for AllMusic, Timothy Monger called the album "a fully present and vital collection of timely emotions and timeless arrangements" commenting that the album "is a stunner with plenty of emotional firepower, but it can also feel soft as a wool blanket".[5] Steve Horowitz of PopMatters said, "The dozen tracks here showcase the range of her talents as a singer and a songwriter and that of a human being who refuses to accept life's limitations and stand up for herself".[15] Charles Waring of Mojo praised Yola's "caressing vocals", calling the album an "enthralling step on her musical voyage".[12] Reviewing the album for Uncut, Stephen Deusner wrote that Yola emphasises "the nuance in her voice" on the Stand for Myself, which he called "lovingly written, arranged and produced".[4] Writing for musicOMH, Graeme Marsh stated, "The vocals here are telling; it's effortlessly stunning, grabbing attention with how easily she achieves something countless others spend years chasing".[13] Austin Saalman from Under the Radar enjoyed the album, saying, "Stand For Myself hangs together more cohesively than Walk Through Fire, feeling more urgent and existing upon a grander scale than its predecessor".[16]

Writing for Paste, Andy Crump described the album as "triumphant" and claimed that "it's frank and fresh in its fashion, carrying darkness and unguarded emotions on crests of S-tier artistry".[1] Maura Johnston from Pitchfork gave the album a 7.4 out of ten writing that the album "isn't a record defined by genre as much as it is by Yola's spirit, which transforms her matter-of-fact assertions of personhood into amphitheater-ready anthems".[14] Kitty Empire from The Observer gave the album three out of five stars mentioning on the "eclectic inspirations" of the album.[2]

Year-end lists

Select year-end rankings of Stand for Myself
Publication List Rank Ref.
Consequence Top 50 Albums of 2021
47
PopMatters The 75 Best Albums of 2021
44
Rolling Stone The 50 Best Albums of 2021
38

Industry awards

Awards and nominations for Stand for Myself
Year Ceremony Category Result Ref.
2022 Grammy Awards Best Americana Album Nominated

Track listing

All tracks are produced by Dan Auerbach.[21]

Stand for Myself track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Barely Alive"
3:36
2."Dancing Away in Tears"
3:48
3."Diamond Studded Shoes"
3:24
4."Be My Friend"
3:28
5."Great Divide"
3:36
6."Starlight"
  • Yola
  • Auerbach
  • Bobby Wood
4:02
7."If I Had to Do It All Again"
  • Yola
  • Auerbach
  • Hemby
3:46
8."Now You're Here"
  • Yola
  • Auerbach
  • Hemby
4:08
9."Whatever You Want"
3:51
10."Break the Bough"
3:20
11."Like a Photograph"
  • Yola
  • Auerbach
  • Patrick James McLaughlin
5:02
12."Stand for Myself"
  • Yola
  • Auerbach
  • Hemby
  • Hannah Vasanth
4:13
Total length:46:18

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes and Tidal.[21][22]

Musicians

  • Yola – vocals
  • Andy Gabbard – background vocals (1–3, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11)
  • Nick Movshon – bass guitar
  • Mike Rojas – clavichord (1–3), glockenspiel, vibraphone (1, 2, 6, 11); piano (2–12), synthesizer (2), organ (9), harpsichord (12)
  • Aaron Frazer – drums
  • Tom Bukovac – electric guitar (1–11), acoustic guitar (2, 3, 8, 9, 11, 12)
  • Russ Pahl – electric guitar (1–5, 7–12), bass guitar (2), steel guitar (3), acoustic guitar (4, 6, 7)
  • Billy Sanford – electric guitar (1–10, 12), acoustic guitar (11)
  • Ray Jacildo – glockenspiel, vibraphone (1, 2, 6, 11);, organ (1–3, 5–9, 11, 12), Mellotron (4), harpsichord (6), synthesizer (7), piano (10)
  • Sam Bacco – percussion
  • Dan Auerbach – percussion (1, 6), electric guitar (2–7, 9, 10, 12), background vocals (7)
  • Ashley Wilcoxson – background vocals (2, 5, 6)
  • Raymond Mason – horn (2, 8, 10)
  • Bobby Wood – piano (2–12)
  • Matt Combs – strings (2, 6, 7, 11)
  • Brandi Carlile – background vocals (4)
  • Dan Dugmore – steel guitar (4, 9, 11)
  • Alfreda McCrary – background vocals (8, 9, 12)
  • Ann McCrary – background vocals (8, 9, 12)
  • Regina McCrary – background vocals (8, 9, 12)

Technical

  • Dan Auerbach – producer, recording producer, mixer
  • M. Allen Parker – mixer, recording engineer
  • Alan Silverman – mastering engineer (1, 3–6, 8–11)
  • Ryan Smith – mastering engineer (2, 7)
  • Caleb VanBuskirk – engineer
  • Josh Ditty – engineer
  • Trey Keller – engineer
  • Mickey Smay – assistant recording engineer
  • Tyler Zwiep – assistant recording engineer

Charts

Chart performance for Stand for Myself
Chart (2021) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (OCC)[23] 11
UK Albums (OCC)[24] 46
UK Americana Albums (OCC)[25] 1
US Billboard 200[26] 196
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[27] 39

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Crump, Andy (30 July 2021). "Yola Shows Us Who She Is on Stand for Myself". Paste. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  2. 1 2 3 Empire, Kitty (25 July 2021). "Yola: Stand for Myself review – retro country soul with bite". The Observer. Archived from the original on 10 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  3. 1 2 Bernstein, Jonathan; Dolan, Jon; Freeman, Jon; Grow, Kory; Martoccio, Angie (July–August 2021). "Quick Hits: Ten new albums you need to know about now". Rolling Stone. No. 1353/1354. p. 133.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Deusner, Stephen (August 2021). "Yola – Stand for Myself: Pop, soul, outrage and joy...". Uncut. No. 291. p. 32.
  5. 1 2 3 Monger, Timothy. "Stand for Myself – Yola". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  6. ↑ Curto, Justin (4 August 2021). "Yola Had to Break Music History's Rules to Make Stand for Myself". Vulture. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  7. ↑ Browne, David (22 April 2021). "Yola on the 'Good Energy' of Her New Protest Song and Finding Her Voice on Her Second LP". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  8. ↑ Rowley, Glenn (27 May 2021). "Yola's New Single "Stand For Myself" is a Black Feminist Anthem: Stream". Consequence. Archived from the original on 23 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  9. ↑ Zemler, Emily (21 July 2021). "Watch Yola Perform 'Stand for Myself' on 'Colbert'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  10. 1 2 "Stand for Myself by Yola reviews". AnyDecentMusic?. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  11. 1 2 "Stand for Myself by Yola Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  12. 1 2 Waring, Charles (August 2021). "Yola – Stand for Myself: Bristol singer widens her musical horizons with eclectic second album". Mojo. No. 333. p. 83.
  13. 1 2 Marsh, Graeme (3 August 2021). "Yola – Stand For Myself". musicOMH. Archived from the original on 3 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  14. 1 2 Johnston, Maura (5 August 2021). "Yola: Stand for Myself Album Review". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  15. 1 2 Horowitz, Steve (27 July 2021). "Yola Brilliantly Expands Her Soulful Sound on 'Stand For Myself'". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 23 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  16. 1 2 Saalman, Austin (29 July 2021). "Yola: Stand For Myself (Easy Eye Sound) – review". Under the Radar. Archived from the original on 23 August 2021. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  17. ↑ Siroky, Mary (7 December 2021). "Top 50 Albums of 2021". Consequence. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  18. ↑ Elliott, Mike (8 December 2021). "The 75 Best Albums of 2021". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 8 December 2021. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
  19. ↑ Freeman, Jon (3 December 2021). "The 50 Best Albums of 2021". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on 8 December 2021. Retrieved 7 December 2021.
  20. ↑ "2022 Grammy Awards: The full list of nominees and winners". NPR Music. 3 April 2022. Archived from the original on 3 April 2022. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
  21. 1 2 Stand for Myself (booklet). Yola. Easy Eye Sound. 2021. EES01802.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  22. ↑ "Credits / Stand For Myself / Yola". Tidal. Archived from the original on 11 August 2021. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  23. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  24. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  25. ↑ "Official Americana Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
  26. ↑ "Yola Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  27. ↑ "Yola Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
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