“Champion” by Bishop Briggs

As singer Bishop Briggs herself has stated, the premise of “Champion” is based on the singer having self-esteem issues (prompted by a break up). In the verses, we can see that she is definitely having mental/emotional concerns, as in expressing a desire to do away with the past by mentally ‘burning’ items which logically mean a lot to her, such as her “furniture” and her “songs”. This is due to Bishop being at a low point – or as she puts it at the beginning of the track the “darkest spot in (her) mind”.

But in the choruses we can see that she has been able to derive benefits from sinking so low. Indeed she had reached a point where there was “nowhere to go but back up again”. Or again referring to her own symbolism, Bishop Briggs acknowledges that “you got to get bruised before you get mad” and “fall down before you fight back”. Or put differently, she is putting forth the idea that hardships bring out the best in individuals.

Indeed the overall theory this track is insinuating is that the aforementioned depression the singer was experiencing, once she finally overcame it, made her emerge from the experience stronger than she was before. Or as she states, despite initially “feeling so week”, she has come to realize in contrast that she is actually “a champion”.

So succinctly put, this is a self-empowerment song. It recognizes that there will be hardships, disappointments and depressions in life. But it also acknowledges the principle that such painful experiences are what ultimately make us stronger. And if a person adopts the right kind of disposition, as Bishop has in this track, they can even rise up from such setbacks as a champion. They will rise up not only stronger but also realizing an indomitable level of self-worth that they were not able to perceive earlier.

Quick Facts about “Champion”

• This is the first song Bishop Briggs dropped in 2019.
• Bishop has her head shaved in the video to “Champion”. Her decision to do this was not directly linked to the video but rather to show support for a friend of hers who began chemotherapy in 2018.
• The song was written by Bishop along with K.Flay and the track’s producer, Joel Little.
• It was released on 17 July 2019, unassociated with any album.
• Bishop Briggs gave “Champion” its television debut on 28 July, 2019. This performance took place on The Late Late Show with James Corden.