“My Mind & Me” by Selena Gomez

One way of looking at this piece (“My Mind & Me”) is at it being yet another contemporary song by a popular female singer in which the vocalist sets out to illustrate that she indeed suffers from mental/emotional issues.

Or another way of interpreting it – if you were put aside the fact that this is Selena Gomez and that this is the title track of a documentary centered on her internal struggles – then, at least to some degree, this song can be taken as more generally speaking to that topic, i.e. inner discontent and incongruence.

So even though we know that it’s become trendy for female musicians especially to harp on psychological struggles, we are tempted to look at this piece in terms of its general applicability, since no proper nouns are utilized in the lyrics. 

But once again, this is the title track to an actual documentary about Selena. So it’s safe to proceed under the presumption that she is very much referring to herself.

The Lyrics of “My Mind & Me”

So from the onset for instance we find the vocalist alluding to her massive success. Here, she talks about using “the glory” surrounding her stardom as a way to try to escape from feelings of worthlessness. In that sense, Selena alludes to the fame actually being a hindrance to healing. This is because spectators were so caught up in the allure that they didn’t bother to ascertain whether or not she was doing okay.

In the second verse, Gomez insinuates that there was a reason she didn’t make these issues known previously, presumably to actual loved ones. This is because she did not want to make herself “a burden” upon them. Then the singer closes out the passage with a sentiment we invariably find either stated forthrightly in these tortured-female-pop-star songs or as the rationale behind them. 

And that is Selena deciding to make her innermost vulnerabilities known to the world. She is doing so not in the name of profit or anything like that. According to her, the goal is to relate to listeners who may be going through similar issues.

And for her specifically those issues, as illustrated in the chorus, is a person being at odds with his or her own mind. In this part of the song, Gomez also drives home the point that she is revealing herself so that others with likeminded maladies “won’t feel alone now”.

Takeaway

In closing, it is pretty well-known that Selena is one of those types of pop stars – one who has been a celebrity since a young age – that enjoys a very-devout following. So it stands to reason that her fandom in particular would find some value in this song, with their icon revealing that she is indeed human, in a manner of speaking.

But other listeners may not take the matter at hand as seriously. And why? Simply because pop star vulnerability, especially on the part of female singers, has become a selling point of late. On top of that, suffering from self-esteem issues and being reluctant to talk about them – which appears to be at the heart of Selena’s case as presented – in today’s world are more or less considered to be run-of-the-mill psychological problems.

Release of “My Mind & Me”

This is a song that was put out through Interscope Records on 3 November 2022. It came out on the same date as Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me, a documentary that aired on Apple TV+. 

Said documentary centers on Selena’s life during the late 2010s. It is noted for, in part, highlighting challenges she faced during that time. Some of the aforementioned challenges the singer had to deal with include:

• bipolar disorder
• serious kidney complications
• a well-publicized breakup with Justin Bieber

In fact speaking of Gomez and the Biebs, shortly before this track was dropped, Selena made headlines due to being joyfully pictured alongside Hailey Beiber. Hailey is the woman Justin hooked up with after he broke up with Gomez. Many were initially under the impression that maybe the two ladies had some type of related beef.

Credits for “My Mind & Me”

Selena Gomez wrote this track with these writers:

• Amy Allen
• Michael Pollack
• Jon Bellion
• Stefan Johnson
• Jordan Johnson

The latter two are part of an behind-the-scenes’ outfit known as The Monsters & Strangerz. The pair are credited with producing this piece.

Interesting to Note:

There was a time, i.e. during the 2010s, when Gomez was an artist who regularly went multi-platinum. As of the onset of the 2020s, things have changed slightly. Her record sales have cooled down significantly, and she has yet to come out with even a platinum-selling single during this decade. But as alluded to earlier, her stardom is such that she continues to enjoy A list status nonetheless.

Gomez revealed that her bipolar disorder struggle was so serious that she contemplated suicide. She revealed that she felt the world would be a better place if she died. According to her, it was when she started nearing her early twenties that the darkness got more intense. Things got so dangerous that she was forced to check into a treatment center. According to her, she checked into as many as four of these centers to try to overcome her predicament.

Fans’ Reaction

Fans who are living with bipolar disorder, depression and/or anxiety have shared that Selena’s songs, such as “My Mind & Me”, have given them strength to face the world. And thanks to this song, a Selenator with depression expressed that he can understand his mind better now than ever before

Overall, the way this artist took her darkest life experiences and thoughts to create this raw and beautiful thing called “My Mind & Me” has left fans inspired and fascinated.