Track of the Day: Jen Ella - 'Lipstick Queen'

Scotland-based Cork native Jen Ella has shared the music video for her latest track, empowerment tune 'Lipstick Queen'.

Ella encompasses the genres of folk, pop, blues and indie-rock; infusing each sound alongside the mellow tones of her trademark husky voice.

Often singing about love, romance, childhood and Ireland's roots, 'Lipstick Queen' is a down-to-earth, slow melody that reflects on the freedom to be yourself.

Previously releasing 'Spoken Words' and 'Common People' in 2020, Ella has returned to kickstart 2021 with the introspective anthem.

“'Lipstick Queen' aims to empower people to love themselves for who they are and accept their uniqueness," Jen Ella said of the track.

"It takes you on a journey of the battle of acceptance in society following daily comparison and social pressures to developing comfort in being able to express yourself freely without these thoughts’’

The song was produced and recorded in the Venice of the North recording studio with Andrew Shepard in Glasgow, with Jen writing it outside a cafe in Cork city.

"While waiting on friends, I saw this pristine lady in the corner putting on some lipstick and appearing comfortable in her skin. These visuals sparked interest in writing a song about empowering others to feel confidence in who they are and to love themselves for who they are.

"It is a very personal song to me as I feel like daily comparison is something I would have struggled with and experienced and I feel that it is a common theme in society to live up to other people’s expectations of you," the musician continued.

"I think I wanted to connect with others through this song to portray the strong message of self love and acceptance and that loving yourself for who you are is a really important quality to have."

The video was improvised between restrictions, with Jen herself taking on the role of the Lipstick Queen in a solo performance to portray the emotions as a personal message. With mostly night shots, the visuals take the viewer on a tour around the city inside of Ella's headspace.

"I also really enjoy acting so I was excited to get going on to connect with the story and character that I had developed and wrote," Jen said of the video shot.

"It was shot and directed by Lewis Smith and edited by Leona Gove who are both very talented in the film industry. It was shot in various locations around Glasgow and we decided to set out a darkness in to light theme to project the transition of the Queen not accepting themselves and beginning to accept themselves."

Check out the darkness-to-light video for 'Lipstick Queen' below: