"I'm a Mess" is a song by American singer

Bebe Rexha Bleta "Bebe" Rexha ( , ; born August 30, 1989) is an American singer and songwriter. She signed with Warner Records in 2013, and was credited with co-writing releases of other artists—such as Eminem's Grammy Award-winning single " The Monster" ...

from her debut studio album, '' Expectations'' (2018). It was released as the first and only single from the album on June 15, 2018, following an early radio release in the United States. The song is produced by Jussifer and vocal produced by Devon Corey. According to Rexha, "The song is about accepting your own imperfections, and not dwelling on them but rather celebrating them".

Background and release

On September 18, 2017, a snippet of the track was shared by Rexha via an

Instagram Instagram is an American photo sharing, photo and Short-form content, short-form video sharing social networking service owned by Meta Platforms. It allows users to upload media that can be edited with Social media camera filter, filters, be ...

story. The second snippet was released on April 20, 2018. On June 7, 2018, Bebe announced through social media that her upcoming debut album's first single, entitled "I'm a Mess", would be released on June 15, 2018.

Composition

"I'm a Mess" contains an interpolation of the 1997 song "

Bitch Bitch may refer to: * Bitch (slang), a vulgar derogatory term used primarily referring to women, but is often directed towards men as well * A female dog or other canine Bitch or bitches may also refer to: Arts and media Film and television ...

", performed by

Meredith Brooks Meredith Ann Brooks (born June 12, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. A member of the Oregon music scene, she received international acclaim with her solo album '' Blurring the Edges'' (1997) and its single, "Bitch", which r ...

. It was written by Rexha alongside

Justin Tranter Justin Drew Tranter (born June 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, singer, and activist. Tranter has written songs for artists such as Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Linkin Park, Kelly Clarkson, Sara Bareilles, Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber, DNCE, ...

and Jussifer, while the latter handled production with Devon Corey. The song centers around the artist's experience of

unrequited love Unrequited love or one-sided love is love that is not openly reciprocated or understood as such by the beloved. The beloved may not be aware of the admirer's deep affection, or may consciously reject it knowing that the admirer admires them. Me ...

for an unnamed love interest. The artist is deeply enamored, but the recipient of her affections remains indifferent, leading to a cascade of emotions including sadness, anger, and insecurity. These emotions manifest as the artist grapples with trust issues, causing her to become guarded and lash out at the world around her. The lyrics serve as a poignant portrayal of the artist's inner turmoil, torn between the intensity of her love and the simultaneous feelings of resentment. Although she recognizes the impossibility of a reciprocated love, a glimmer of hope persists within her, yearning for a change in the dynamics. Beyond the personal narrative, the song offers a broader commentary on the complexities of love. It highlights the dual nature of love as a potent and, at times, destructive emotion. The artist becomes a casualty of her own affections, inadvertently inflicting emotional wounds upon herself without realizing the harm.

Music video

The music video was directed by

Sophie Muller Sophie Luise Elisabeth Muller (born 31 January 1962) is an English music video director who has directed over 300 music videos. She won a Grammy Award for Annie Lennox's 1992 ''Diva'' video album, and an MTV Video Music Award for Lennox's song " ...

and premiered on July 19, 2018.

Live performances

Rexha performed the song on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by actor and comedian Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It i ...

'', on the

Teen Choice Awards The Teen Choice Awards were an annual awards show that aired on the Fox television network between 1999 and 2019. The awards, based on a popularity vote that could be overridden by the producerswho reserved the right to choose the winnerscovered ...

, on the

2018 MTV Europe Music Awards The 2018 MTV EMAs (also known as the MTV Europe Music Awards) was held at the Bizkaia Arena (Bilbao Exhibition Centre) in Barakaldo, part of Greater Bilbao, Basque Country, Spain, on 4 November 2018. The ceremony's host was Hailee Steinfeld. Th ...

. She also performed at the

iHeartRadio Music Festival The iHeartRadio Music Festival is a two-day music concert festival held every year on the third or fourth weekend of September since 2011 by iHeartRadio along the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. From 2011 to 2015, the f ...

(along with " Meant to Be") and on '' Big Brother'' and ''

America's Got Talent ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is an American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distributed by) and ...

''.

Track listing

*Digital download #"I'm a Mess" - 3:15 *Digital download – Acoustic #"I'm a Mess" (Acoustic) – 2:33 *Digital download – Remixes #"I'm a Mess" ( Ofenbach Remix) — 2:44 #"I'm a Mess" (

Robin Schulz Robin Alexander Schulz (; born 28 April 1987) is a German musician, DJ, and record producer. On 4 February 2014, he released the first single from his debut album, a remix of "Waves (Mr. Probz song), Waves" by Dutch hip hop artist Mr. Probz. T ...

Remix) – 3:20 #"I'm a Mess" (Alphalove Remix) – 3:11

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I'm a Mess 2018 songs 2018 singles Warner Records singles Bebe Rexha songs Songs written by Bebe Rexha Songs written by Shelly Peiken Songs written by Justin Tranter Songs written by Meredith Brooks Music videos directed by Sophie Muller Songs written by Jussifer