Self Esteem spoke out against the fat-phobic comments she saw online in response to her appearance on The Late Late Show With James Corden.
The singer and songwriter (real name Rebecca Lucy Taylor) made her debut on American television in a chat show this Monday (January 9), performing “I Do This All The Time” from her second album “Prioritise Pleasure”, nominated for Mercury.
In a tweet after the episode aired and the performance was posted online, Taylor said she had seen several negative comments regarding her body.
“Americans call me fat on the Internet,” Self Esteem began a series of tweets. “Whatever it is, but I really feel that there is a time warp going on here [in the US] in terms of cultural and social expectations of femininity.
“I’ve been struggling with an eating disorder all my life, and I don’t feel like shit anymore because of a body that currently works great.”
She continued, “I’m no less talented or excellent because I’m heavier than Hadid, etc. I can gain or lose weight, but I dream of a day when it won’t be talked about.
“The fact is that it is not difficult to lose weight at all. It just makes life a lot less wonderful. My internal wiring, of course, perceives my reflection as something that needs to be “sorted”, but then I remember that the beautiful versus the less beautiful, I quit and continue my day.”
You can see the posts below.
American people are calling me fat on the internet. Which is whatever but I really do feel like it’s a time warp here in terms of cultural societal expectations of femininity. I’ve struggled with disordered eating my whole life and I cba to feel shite anymore about a body that is
— Rebecca Lucy Taylor (@SELFESTEEM___) January 10, 2023
The thing is, it’s not hard to get really thin. It just makes life something a lot less lovely. My inner wiring certainly sees my reflection as something that needs ‘sorting’ but then I remember the lovely vs less lovely toss up and get on with my day.
— Rebecca Lucy Taylor (@SELFESTEEM___) January 10, 2023
During a previous conversation with Women’s Health UK (via Metro), Taylor talked about how she “struggled with disordered eating” in the past, “like most women I know.”
“It was a depressing reality that in my old band [Slow Club], the thinner I was, the more opportunities we had,” she added.
“Thanks to Self Esteem, I have full creative control, and it was important for me to glorify my body: it is not large; it is not small; it can go up or down the stone. It’s a healthy size 14, and for some reason it seems radical.”
In an interview with NME for the cover of Big Read in 2021, Taylor explained how her latest studio album delved into her experience of embracing “real self-acceptance and self-love.”
“It’s the answer to everything, but it’s something you shouldn’t do,” she continued.
“I often walk this road and get very upset. But then I think: no, just stay in my little piece of the world, in my band, accept yourself, love yourself, and then compose your stupid songs and dance your stupid dances. And if someone can learn from this and pass it on, at least I’m doing something?”
Self Esteem recreated the 1999 Rolling Stone magazine cover of Britney Spears for the interview in question and explained how she wanted to present a “realistic” version of the iconic image.
“My idea was to recreate that, but what’s real is that there’s a sandwich next to me with a scaled—down sticker, Kermit, and I don’t look like Britney Spears,” Taylor explained.
“I want to show, really reliably, how I look in bed. The reality is that women don’t look like that in bed.”
Meanwhile, Self Esteem announced three concerts in North America this April.
Next month she will go on a tour of the UK and Ireland — you can find all the remaining tickets here.
