“Just a Girl” by the band “No Doubt” is a liberation song that disenchants young women of the 90s and voices the sexes’ imbalances. It involves becoming a woman and not just a girl. She expresses how the world cannot let her become independent through her lyrics, “his world is forcing me to hold your hand”, just because she is a girl. She expresses how she is living in captivity and how “rule of thumb” make her worry. The video imagery of the song entails feminine empowerment and unity as it features Stefani in a lavish ladies’ room while the men walk in a dingier bathroom.
The song Gwen Stefani and Tom Dumont wrote just a Girl. The producer of the song is Matthew Wilder, and it made its appearance on their 2003 top album, “The Single 1992-2003”. Initially, the song was written for their third studio album, “Tragic Kingdom 1995”. The song was launched as the first position single in September 1995 all over the US. The single is marked as the breakthrough that made the band popular as it peaked at top 25 on the Billboard Hot 100. This song was the first that Stefani wrote without help from his brother.
My thoughts about the song are that the writer is frustrated and annoyed from the treatment that ladies get because they are just supposed to sit and be beautiful. The sarcasm in the lyrics such as “Cause they won’t let me drive late at night”, “Cause I’m just a girl, oh, little Old me, Well, don’t let me out of your sight, Oh, I’m just a girl” makes fun of the men perspectives protecting ladies since they cannot defend themselves. Nevertheless, this protest song is against gender role curses and sexism globally.