"[Carly Rae Jepsen] sings on “Better Than Me” on the album. That song is not really about [Black Lives Matter]. That song is about a weird jealousy with being—kind of what I said [about feeling] not black enough or not queer enough. That song is about that dark moment when you look around. You can visualize the person. It’s the moment when you slip into that doubt and that weird jealousy. She sings on that song, but I don’t know if she knows that’s what it’s about".
Dev Hynes, EW
Blood Orange's (New York via London singer-songwriter and producer Dev Hynes) third album Freetown Sound (2016) touches on so many themes that it's easy to see how Jepsen might not have fully realized what Hynes had in mind when "Better Than Me" wad recorded. The record touches on Hynes' deep nostalgic for the sound, aesthetic and intellectual depth of the 1980s, his parents' migration from Freetown, Sierra Leone to the UK, his affinity for the female voice (as well as the kind of androgynous vocal performativity inspired by Prince) and contemporary racial politics.
The enjoyability of the song - which features Hynes' ability to present a relatively chill, ethereal and affecting fusion pop tapestry made up from eclectic historical sonic (jazz, English hip hop) and thematic references - and the hushed manner in Hynes' and Jepsen's vocal performances also makes it easy to miss out on the depth of its (relatively oblique) lyrical content:
'Ninety-nine percent, I know you're not fineNow everyone could be mistakenly kindNiggas in the back try and act blindSeven ways to think about your eyesight
Say what you will, what you wantKnow it's not the time that you canReceiving a gift of change with a kissWhen nights alone and nights you're boredAnd can't resist or miss the chance of being who they think they think you areHow long before your journey will end in sweet stone?Walls inside of me that then tell me to breatheThat shake your hand and thank the man for just letting it be
Know my worth and fake the blameBut I know she's better than meWait your turn and change your waysBut I know he's better than meWhy choose love when hate comes first?And I know they're better than meWait your turn and change your waysBut I know he's better than me'
Lyrics: Genius
As Hynes has revealed to , he was bullied severely as a child by other black British children for not 'being black enough' and had to discover his black identity for himself (a personal history arc that he arguably shares with President Barack Obama). After gaining a hard-won confidence by finding identification and affinity with the black artistic scene in New York since moving there in 2007, Hynes is now bringing a powerful and compelling transnational perspective on race, identity and sexuality to the table.
