Sophie May - 'The Babysitter'
Released in anticipation of May’s headline show at the iconic London Omeara, Sophie May’s ‘The Babysitter’ is a wonderfully witty track that has already garnered thousands of streams.
A followup from her release of ‘Doppelganger’, Sophie May is back with her first new material since her EP released last summer. Using time to reflect and get better intune with what she is feeling now the gorgeous track entitled ‘The Baby Sitter’ was written in collaboration with slimdan and is a heartfelt addition to May’s repertoire. Explaining her intentions and thought process behind the release, she explained
‘The song was inspired by dating someone new that felt like my first ‘adult’ relationship, which made me realise how immature my past experiences had been where I had felt more like a babysitter than a girlfriend’
Encapsulating her trademark lyrical turn of phrase, sweet melodies and magnetic tone, the track explores self discovery and the impact that comes from the realisation that a good relationship and partner who values your worth is what you’ve been missing out on.
The track opens with a gorgeously soft and mellow guitar line, delivered amidst a hazy static that captures May’s feelings of nostalgia and wistfulness. Her vocals are reminiscent of Joni Mitchell, a silky smooth tone that expertly teeters between the melancholic and hopeful states of mind she finds herself discussing. In the opening verse she writes
‘Six years on me, baby, didn't mean a thing. All my youth was wasted putting you to sleep.’
The relationship dynamic is crystal clear from these lyrics. May acknowledges that as a child herself, she was expected to take care of her partner in a way that was never truly appreciated nor reciprocated. Mentions of feeling jealous and crazy indicate an immaturity within the relationship and we can sense May’s frustration with being stuck in something that feels so monotonous and unfulfilling. The delivery of these lines have a lullaby softness to them which further go to illustrate the imbalance and tiredness in the relationship; she is putting the relationship to bed in the same way she had to do for her partner. The chorus in contrast is far brighter and sung in the major scale.
‘Now, I’m dating a grown-up, a fully fledged human who knows what he's doing. Oh, I'd never known a giver when I was the babysitter’
Not only is she herself grown, but she is now dating someone who has the maturity and knowledge about life that she never knew existed. When previously she didn’t feel her efforts being recognised, now she has a connection with someone who sees her as their equal. She explains in the second verse that she perhaps should have known better, if she was smarter she would have realised. The line about the world ending is a tug on the heartstrings and speaks to that familiar feeling of regret and self-blame that often accompanies freeing yourself from a relationship but slowly but surely, through the eyes of her new generous and giving partner, May is coming to understand her worth.
The next few months have a lot in store for Sophie. In the summer, she will be playing alongside some huge names at Latitude festival and towards autumn she will be setting off around Europe for some featured gigs in Germany and France. If you’ve not managed yet to secure tickets, her TikTok which boasts some 200k+ followers has snippets of everything she is up to and hints of more projects to come.
Words by Kirsty-Ann Thomson