A lack of respect for women and their autonomy over their bodies is ingrained in many cultures. “Sixteen,” a new single from Nashville singer-songwriter, educator and activist Ariel Bui, explores how ingrained this issue is in American culture and what we can do about it.
Bui looks back on her newfound independence growing up – taking trips to the beach and finding her voice as a punk rocker. With a twist on the script to The Beatles’ I Saw Her Standing There, whose opening line sexualizes a girl, she talks about carving out a place for yourself in a male-dominated culture and industry. As the surf-rock-kissed minor melody unfolds, Bui reveals additional layers of trauma she is processing.
“The Beatles weren’t the only ones who normalized the sexualization of teenage girls,” Bui says in a press release. “It’s such a common theme in music and media that it doesn’t even need to be explicitly mentioned. As a young woman, up until the age of 16, I had experienced sexual abuse many times. And unfortunately, this experience is not just reserved for me.”
In the chorus of “Sixteen,” Bui makes it clear that she’s not willing to be put down and keep quiet. While she keeps singing: “I may be just a little girl / I have something to say.”
We are very happy to present the music video for the track today. Working with cinematographer Michael Mallicote, costume designer Cybelle Elena and hair and makeup artist Misti Blu Day – and with some help from the folks at Sebastian Inlet Surf & Sport – Bui filmed the piece in nearby Florida from Cocoa Beach, where she grew up. She’d come down before filming to attend an all-girls surf camp called Chica Weekend, which led to surfing being a central theme in the video, which also starred surf instructor Sofia Pickett. Bui notes that the camp and filming coincided with the US Supreme Court decision Roe v. calfthe legal decision that has protected a woman’s right to an abortion since 1973.
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“It felt really important to work and surf with other women, to lift each other up and to honor the earth and the ocean, our mother earth,” she says. “We will not be silenced. You may think we’re just little girls, but we have something to say. We are strong, we are powerful, and our bodies are ours.”
Check out the video above and find the single on your favorite streaming services. The track is a little foretaste Real & FantasyBui’s first new album since 2016. She collaborated on the 10-track set with star producer Andrija Tokic at his studio, The Bomb Shelter, with contributions from great musicians like Ellen Angelico, Megan Coleman, Jo Shornikow and “Little Jack” Lawrence.
You can pre-order the LP through Bandcamp and have two upcoming opportunities to meet Bui and her crew in person. First, she will perform at the Celebrate Nashville Cultural Festival at Centennial Park on Saturday, October 1st. The album is out on Friday October 14th and you can get a copy at Bui’s release party, which is scheduled for that night at The East Room; Jo Shornikow, Jessica Breanne and the scene‘s in-house editor Jack Silverman opens the show. Keep an eye on the Bui website for updates.