The Story Behind The Song: Deciphering ‘Not Strong Enough’ by Boygenius
On the surface, Boygenius were never meant to be this big. Think about it for a moment: three alternative singer-songwriters tour together and put out an EP to commemorate it in 2018. Five years later, they become the biggest indie band in the world, selling out arenas, headlining festivals worldwide, and finishing up the year with an armful of Grammys, certifying each individual. Geniuses, as far as the mainstream is concerned, in their own right. It sounds ludicrous, yet it may have been more expected than we think.
Up until their debut album, 2023’s The Record, the creative process behind Boygenius had been less collaborative than one would assume. Rather than create music together, each would bring a song to the other two and then complete it. ‘Me & My Dog’ was a Phoebe Bridgers song originally, before finishing it as a group. ‘Salt in the Wound’ was from Lucy Dacus, that sort of thing.
This makes sense. After all, Boygenius as a whole wasn’t really meant to go beyond curiosity, released for their tour as a trio. A way for three very close friends to make some great music together and commemorate a great time in their lives.
Then the EP was released, and something quite remarkable happened. Those songs became some of the most beloved in their whole back catalogue. Responding to requests from all sides to play them live, Bridgers, Dacus, and Julien Baker decided to form a whole band to tour their new project.
That tour was the biggest sign yet that there was a lot more that could be achieved as a trio, rather than three separate singer-songwriters with a hobby. When the time came to release their first full-length album, there was only one choice when it came to The Record‘s debut single. One of the first songs, written not by one member and then fleshed out with the rest, but a genuine collaborative effort from the ground up.
What inspired ‘Not Strong Enough’ by Boygenius?
Released on March 1st, 2023, ‘Not Strong Enough’ was a sign that maybe the arena-slaying success that followed wasn’t such a surprise after all. While the band’s previous efforts had been variations on the hushed, heart-on-sleeve folk-inflected indie that each Genius had made a name for themselves with, ‘Not Strong Enough’ was something different. A lush, glossy pop song bursting with sing-along hooks tailor-made for daytime radio and sunset festival slots.
Not for nothing is the song a Sheryl Crow nod from the title downwards. Immediately, this puts the song not in conversation with the indie kids of the day but of a bygone era. One where Lucinda Williams’ Car Wheels on a Gravel Road was one of the most acclaimed albums of the year. Where some of the biggest names in music included Bonnie Raitt, The Chicks and Melissa Etheridge. As rootsy and gritty as it was, it was unapologetically feminine.
However, the dark side was never far away. As its core, it is a song about the ways in which, to quote a wise man, “self-disgust is self-obsession, honey”. Bridgers, the track’s primary lyricist, elaborated on this in an interview with Rolling Stone, saying, “The two wolves inside us can be self-hatred and self-aggrandising. Being like, ‘I’m not strong enough to show up for you. I can’t be the partner that you want me to be’. But also being like, ‘I’m too fucked up. I’m unknowable in some deep way!’ Self-hatred is a god complex sometimes, where you think you’re the most fucked-up person who’s ever lived. Straight up, you’re not. And it can make people behave really selfishly, and I love each of our interpretations of that concept.”
Fittingly enough for a song about the ways that one person can be their own worst enemy, ‘Not Strong Enough’ showed just how much of a force Boygenius could be when their powers combined. Bridgers’ lyricism, Baker’s rock energy, and Dacus’ showstopping voice made something bigger than anyone would have thought possible from them alone. Here’s hoping that, a mere two years on, and with each Genius comfortably returning to their solo work, we haven’t seen the last of them as a trio just yet.
