The Truth Behind Joshua Bassett’s “Set Me Free”
Joshua Bassett tells many powerful stories with his music. In his most recent EP, the songs “Crisis,” “Secret,” and “Set Me Free” were released. Each of these songs tell personal stories that many people can relate to.
My personal favorite out of the three is “Set Me Free,” (click HERE for a link to the music video!). In a GQ interview, Bassett states that this song is written about sexual abuse he experienced throughout his childhood. He explains how he wrote this song to process what had happened to him, since he wasn’t ever able to before. He says, “It’s an anthem for me and the sort of people who’ve held pain and power over me my whole life.”
The song begins with soft piano playing. He questions why these things are happening to him and then instantly says that he doesn’t want to cause any harm. He acknowledges the other side, saying he understands their hurt.
In the pre-chorus, he sings, “Nothing I say will ease the pain / Why must I hurt for you to feel okay?” This is very powerful, he questions why he has to suffer in order for the other person to feel okay. The piano fades into silence.
Moving into the chorus, he begins to stand up for himself. The chorus is so powerful. He almost reclaims himself. Saying, “You don’t get to take all of me” and “I don’t need your apology (let me be).” The way he sings is something you have to hear for yourself. The first time I listened to this song, it took my breath away.
In the second verse, the piano is even stronger and really keeps the song moving. He admits to running away from these feelings and lying about the truth. He says that he’s trying to work on himself, and had never “felt so weak.”
Once again in the pre-chorus, he sings with a much stronger and fuller tone, representing the mental journey he’s going through. He carries this new voice through the chorus.
Arriving at the bridge, this is the moment of moving on. The strength in the music and lyrics make a big impact on this part of the song. He says that he’s done being taken advantage of and is letting himself be free. But through all of his hurt, he still says “I hope you know that I still care about you, darling.” But, he won’t allow himself to be walked all over like this again. The music fades and gets gradually softer.
At the beginning of the last chorus, he sings in a soft tone while the music disappears to almost nothing. All of a sudden, the music bursts while he sings, “set me free.” The music is intense, as he lets go of all these feelings that have been consuming him for too long. In a short outro, he says, “You don’t get to take all of me / Set me free”
This song is so impactful and carries so much meaning behind it. The song and music video themselves are very simple, however you can really feel the strength and emotion poured into it. Joshua Bassett wrote this song to overcome his own lingering feelings and shared it with the world as a release. This song can be very healing for anyone going through something similar or anyone who is holding onto something they need to process and let go of.
The lyricism is so powerful and continues to blow me away every time I listen. I highly recommend listening to all of Joshua Bassett’s music, especially my favorite of them all, “Set Me Free.”
