You’ve heard the term “female rage,” but what does it mean? In short, it’s anger at the condition of women in society compared to that of men. That anger includes the abuse women go through at the hands of men, the lack of opportunities, the inequality we have to live with everyday, and more. It encapsulates the unfairness of the most minimal to the most severe of elements composing our existence on this Earth. Female rage takes women’s lived experiences and the effects of these conditions.
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Sofia Isella
At the age of 20, Sofia Isella knows where she’s standing with her artistry. Isella debuted her political discography in 2023 with “Us and Pigs.” Inspired by the overturning of Roe v. Wade, the song points out how women are seen as breeders and have less rights than their male counterparts. Much like the rest of her discography, “Us and Pigs” aims to challenge the status quo and bring discomfort.
“Everybody Supports Women” talks about the hypocrisy of supporting women until they succeed, after which the public finds fault even in their qualities. What is remarkable about the track is how it manages to capture the facade people put up to defend their stance, refusing to believe the reason they hate a successful woman is based in misogyny.
“The Doll People” off her I Can Be Your Mother EP is a metaphor for women being objectified. The song has the poetic quality of putting men face to face with how they treat women, while they still don’t understand. With violent and gore lyrics, it’s unsettling. Isella’s talent lies in disrupting norms as she uses everything she knows of to create an atmosphere that cannot be ignored.
With the release of her most recent project titled I’m camera ., she released “Man Made.” While the other songs mentioned here focus on women, “Man Made” focuses on the way the patriarchy affects men too— by creating wars or by adhering to unhealthy masculinity, for example. The track takes a turn as there is a spoken part telling a potential man, Steve, that he’s a man. Isella tells men in general to wake up to the world they’ve created and to notice how it’s hurting everyone, including themselves.
Florence + The Machine
Florence Welch, known under the stage name of Florence + The Machine, has been making music since 2007. Welch’s songs have one of two attributes: a distinct grandiose atmosphere, or stripped back as she allows the emotion in her lyrics to the forefront. Her album How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful has a subtle commentary of women and the suffering they go through in love at the hands of men. The subtlety is apparent with “Which Witch” where she lets out her heartbreak and anger, juxtaposing it with the history of women burned at the stake for the most minor offenses—anything that makes us who we are is “deemed and delivered a crime.”
The record that establishes Welch as an artist who shows the female rage of today is Dance Fever. The album begins with “King,” a disapproval of each expectation women are held to, such as being mothers, brides and even queens. Going between a high and low register, she paints herself as a king, a figure in a position of leadership which is more admired and remembered. Florence + The Machine reminds people that women have aspirations bigger than who they could be to someone else.
Later in the album, “Dream Girl Evil” faces the listener with each stereotype reserved to women. Welch points out that once women don’t comply with what men expect, they are evil to their eyes. They turn against us because we dared to break their fantasy of a dream girl. She makes the observation that men often look for the equivalent of a mother in relationships, which is a position they expect women to occupy in a relationship. It is unfair, considering that a woman is her own person, not just an imagined version of who she could be to the male gender.
Released as a single and later placed on the deluxe of Dance Fever, “Mermaids” plays on the mythology of the woman-lite creature luring men to their death. Welch reframes the myth to a modern perspective of going out and getting drunk, often seen as debauchery for women. What is interesting about the track is how there’s only a brief mention of men, instead focusing on the lives of the “mermaids,” these women that don’t adhere to societal standards. She sings of community and the right to have fun as a girl, putting men in the background.
Paris Paloma
Paris Paloma rose to fame after the success of her song “labour” released in 2023, which became the anthem of denouncing the injustice done to women. Paloma entered the music scene with her debut single “Narcissus” and set the tone for her artistry with the theme of narcissistic fathers, a product of patriarchy that affects the women around them.
Shortly after “labour,” Paloma unveiled “as good a reason.” The lyrics detail the wisdom bestowed upon her by an older woman who has used patriarchy to her advantage. Instead of letting it tear her down, she used it to elevate her confidence. Beauty norms are often a source of insecurities for women. By turning them around and spiting the men behind these standards, she created an encouraging anthem for young girls.
After “as good a reason” came “drywall” detailing a huge issue within the male gender. It talks of the lack of self-awareness from men that the world they built affects them too. By labelling emotions and sensibility as feminine, they repress emotions; which causes these outbursts of anger. In “drywall,” she sets the example of a woman leaving before his violence turns against her. Towards the end, she repeats the lyric “Never making good on silent threats so that he knows that I have nothing” which refers to abusive situations not being recognised as such because of the lack of direct physical violence against the woman.
Recently, the artist released “Good Boy” which once again puts men face to face with the effects of patriarchy. The adherence to rules set by men before them shows the indoctrination works. Paloma’s songwriting and vocals are captivating and honest. She looks at the ugliness of our system and brings awareness to the issues with haunting songs.
Halsey
Halsey has been in the public eye since 2014, when Tumblr crowned “Colors” as the most poetic song of the time. Since then, she released five albums. On her sophomore album Hopeless Fountain Kingdom, the first track excluding the interlude is “100 Letters,” which expresses rage that almost every woman has felt. The lyrics speak of mistreatment by a man followed by his pleas for her to not end the relationship. What is remarkable is Halsey’s way of recounting the events, with the chorus overwhelmed with regret that they didn’t leave earlier, and the horror that she could’ve lost herself in the process.
In the same confessional tone but quite different in genre and anger, Halsey released “You should be sad” on her third album Manic. With pop, country and rock mixed together, their voice brings forth a wave of emotions describing the relationship they survived. It is taking the sadness that someone brought upon her, and turning it around when she realizes they’re the one who should feel the loss.
If there is an album that perfectly encapsulates female rage, it is If I Can’t Have Love, I Want Power. The concept album surrounds the life of a fictional protagonist that cannot escape the norms women are subjected to, so she becomes powerful instead. I can’t recommend the album enough, but since we’re talking about songs specifically, I will highlight “Nightmare.” The song wasn’t in the standard version, and it released much earlier as a single, but it is the epitome of feminism. Halsey takes everything that women have been through, and spits it back at patriarchy. Her screams are cathartic and satisfactory for anyone who knows what she’s talking about.
Last year, she released her newest album The Great Impersonator, which contains the iconic “Lonely Is The Muse.” It is similar in energy to “Nightmare” with the rock influences and the anger in the interpretation, but it talks of a more specific subject, notably existing only for men’s use. It is a criticism of women being seen as muses, but not good enough artists, which is a mentality Halsey opened about during her entire career. Women are expected to fit the expectations placed upon us, and once we’re no longer needed, we are disposable. With her ironic approach, the single is electrifying and extraordinary.
Jessie Reyez
If you’ve heard of Jessie Reyez, you probably have from the song “FIGURES.” The Colombian-Canadian artist put her heartache and betrayal into a vulnerable track that received a lot of attention for a reason. The anger that it holds is universal. A stripped back guitar along with Reyez’s voice detailing what she wishes she could do to this man that has hurt her beyond words resonates with a lot of women.
On the same project, there is “Gatekeeper,” a track about the abuses that happen in the music industry when you’re a female artist. It is crude and heartwrenching, and that is what makes it powerful. Reyez doesn’t hide behind metaphors or tones down the honesty for the comfort of the listener— no, she wants you to feel the injustice at what aspiring women artists go through and get angry.
On her debut album Before Love Comes to Kill Us, she goes through all the phases of heartbreak. I would consider this album to be a representation of female rage, because the way women are treated in relationships with men is highly influenced by the patriarchal mindset that women can be replaced, or aren’t worth as much as men, or are crazy (because why take accountability when you could blame it on the woman?). Anger is justified in this framework. A notable track on the album is “DO YOU LOVE HER?” which confronts the impact of cheating and betrayal.
Her recent album PAID IN MEMORIES holds “**CUDN’T B ME**” which sees both perspectives of the suburban dream. On one hand, the white picket fence house which seems idyllic but holds ugly secrets beneath the surface. On the other hand, being aware doesn’t absorb the effects of this expectation, because to know better doesn’t help to convince your own mind that isn’t what you want. Reyez explores the nuance beautifully by switching the lyrics in the second verse to her perspective.
RAYE
Raye has been in the music industry for a long time, but only got her flowers when she released “Escapism.” followed by her album My 21st Century Blues. Although she mostly focused on electronic and dance music before, she found her sound with R&B, jazz and soul mixed with pop. Her songwriting is honest and comes from a place of vulnerability. On her aforementioned album, she details her lived experience with an abusive producer on “Ice Cream Man.” The lyrics and her vocals are heart-wrenching, as they encapsulate what a lot of women have been through when it comes to sexual assault. What makes “Ice Cream Man.” incredible is how she turns it around and recognizes the strength it takes to continue after that, highlighting the bravery of women all over.
“Hard Out Here.” is another testament to her strength. The anger is palpable in her voice as she sings of all the awful things she’s been through. She places gender inequality to the front as she mentions the struggles that women go through, such as wage inequality and violence which lead to mental health issues, addiction and suicidality. Privileged men perpetuate that violence against women with little to no consequences. “Hard Out Here.” shows that despite everything, women persevere.
“Oscar Winning Tears.” is a lighter approach to anger, since it ridicules men who think they can fool women after mistreating them. It is satisfying to listen to, but there’s an undercurrent of anger that criticizes the cycle of abuse they perpetuate.
After the album, Raye released the single “Genesis.” She talks about the comparison we put ourselves through, the self-sabotage of returning to men who couldn’t care less, the effects of feeling less than. It is similar in sentiment to “Hard Out Here.” except it is more detailed. It handles themes ofdepression, suicidal ideation and addiction. As all Raye songs, it has a silver lining, which is how we still survive despite everything happening.
PVRIS
PVRIS is a duo composed of Lynn Gunn and Brian Macdonald, with Gunn as the frontwoman and leader of the project. The band blends rock, punk and pop together and often discusses issues perpetuating women and the queer community. Their earlier albums, White Noise and All We Know of Heaven, All We Need of Hell focused more on internal struggles. Their third album Use Me slowly headed towards a wider exploration of being in the industry as a queer woman. “Gimme A Minute” doesn’t specify who it addresses, but the rage that emanates throughout the song deserves a place here. It is a criticism of having to keep a composed front for the public, while inside the impression is of going insane.
On their most recent album, EVERGREEN, PVRIS focused more on the difficulties of being a successful musician when you’re a woman or queer— or both. They released “GODDESS” as a single, a feminist anthem that takes men’s opinions and uses them as fuel. The title of the song itself shows the focus on women, along with the lyric “I don’t know who your god is, but I’m a goddess” which can be argued is about men’s obsession with religion, and how they use it as an excuse to dictate our lives, our bodies and our sexualities.
“BURN THE WITCH” takes the wheel when it comes to women’s rights. It involves a huge part of history, which is the burning of women at the stake under the suspicion of witchcraft, and reappropriates it. Even now, women are undermined and silenced when they speak their truth, when they try to succeed, or anything that feels threatening to men. There is another dimension I admire in “BURN THE WITCH,” which is the mentions to lesbianism in the lyrics. Being a lesbian is the worst one could do for patriarchy, since it doesn’t involve men at all. PVRIS plays with this as further proof of not caring about what men think.
The Last Dinner Party
The Last Dinner Party are a band that started recently, yet they became very known in the past two years. They released their debut album Prelude To Ecstasy last year, which contains a multitude of songs describing the female condition. “The Feminine Urge” is the most noticeable one. It discusses the stereotype of women being empathetic, caring, maternal; all of which serve men. The emotional work that women do for men is unpaid labour. The Last Dinner Party criticize this tendency of seeing women as servants, along with what being in this position implies— submission, as well as lack of agency and control.
“Caesar on a TV Screen” explores the fantasy of being a man, and all the advantages that come with that. Some of these include being allowed to speak, stand out, and be in control of your fate. The ingenuity of the song is how they don’t let you forget that this isn’t reality. Lyrics such as “And just for a second, I could be one of the greats” convey the infuriating nature of only men having this prestige.
This month, they released their sophomore album From The Pyre. In true The Last Dinner Party fashion, there are tracks depicting womanhood. A notable one is “I Hold Your Anger” which continues the sentiment started in “The Feminine Urge” of women taking care of everyone around them. They are the ones who have to manage men’s emotions, and when things go wrong, they’re the ones that are blamed. The Last Dinner Party succeeds in making meaningful songs about being a woman, that leave you in awe at their talent.
Interested in more music revolving around the woman condition?
