"The framework in the song is a love affair, but it can happen in any kind of connection," Rhiannon Giddens says of her song "Don't Call Me Names." "The real story was accepting my inner strength and refusing to continue being gas-lit and held back; and refusing to keep sacrificing my mental health for the sake of anything or anyone ... When I listen to it, the anger that I felt then now is the anger I feel at my entire country being gas-lit, held back, and sacrificed. We have to keep saying NO to toxic behavior, no matter how small or large the stage, and keep saying it nice and loud.”
Rhiannon Giddens released a new original song, "Don’t Call Me Names," about rejecting toxic behavior, on August 23, 2020. The track debuted Sunday afternoon on the inaugural episode of Southern Craft Radio, Kelly McCartney’s new show on Apple Music Country.
"The framework in the song is a love affair, but it can happen in any kind of connection," Giddens says. "The real story was accepting my inner strength and refusing to continue being gas-lit and held back; and refusing to keep sacrificing my mental health for the sake of anything or anyone. I don't often write personal songs, but this one has stayed with me—it poured out then and has just sat there waiting for the right time. I got a chance to do it with some incredible musicians and a fabulous producer, and I'm thrilled it's going to be out in the world; when I listen to it, the anger that I felt then now is the anger I feel at my entire country being gas-lit, held back, and sacrificed. We have to keep saying NO to toxic behavior, no matter how small or large the stage, and keep saying it nice and loud.”
