A half made-up Colbie Caillat in her empowering "Try" video
By Emily Hollis
The music industry is heating up with some serious empowerment for women this summer, most notably with recent hits like Colbie Caillat’s “Try,” and John Legend’s “You and I (Nobody Else In The World).”
Caillat’s “Try” has racked up more than 15 million YouTube hits in just two weeks. It’s not only the lyrics that strike a chord, but also the depiction of women without makeup or filters who have not been retouched with Photoshop.
Women of all ages, backgrounds and ethnicities lip-sync to Caillat’s song, fresh-faced and exposed — bravely looking directly into a well-lit camera, beaming out to millions of viewers.
Caillat, who hasn’t been on the music scene very much these past few years, keeps to her breezy, rich roots with this new song, which will be featured on her forthcoming album, Gypsy Heart.
Legend’s video for “You and I (Nobody Else In The World)” also captures women and their loved ones during more personal moments of their daily activities, looking into the camera like it’s a mirror.
The video features Legend’s wife, model Christine Teigen, as well as Orange Is the New Black’s Laverne Cox, who recently made history as the first transgender person nominated for an Emmy.
Legend’s song has been viewed more than 11 million times and counting. Directed by Mishka Kornai, the music video was released in conjunction with an inspiring documentary called When I Look in The Mirror, which can be viewed online here.
The music video and documentary aim to raise awareness about empowering women and girls through #OperationGirl Charity, a six-week fundraiser through CrowdRise.com led by Legend, RYOT, and the Burkle Global Initiative.
“We live in a world where egregious injustices occur regularly against girls and women,” Legend said. “We have a responsibility to take action and disrupt the conditions that allow for such tragedies to occur. Through #OperationGirl we hope to amplify the voices and impact of the many organizations doing great work on behalf of girls and women.”
Caillat and Legend’s lyrics are refreshing and empowering to hear over the radio, and even more so when brought to life on screen.