Homecoming Queen (Thelma Plum song)
"Homecoming Queen" is a song by Australian singer/songwriter Thelma Plum, and was sent to radio on 12 July 2019 as the fourth and final single from her debut studio album Better in Blak. Plum told Triple J that the song "speaks to growing up as an Aboriginal girl in rural Australia", saying, "watching videos on the TV and looking through magazines, but I never saw anyone who looked like me. There was absolutely no representation in mainstream media. That really does something, really skews your idea of beauty. I had to teach myself how to love myself, that I was beautiful and good enough."[2] There is a refence in the song to the 1967 Australian referendum, which asked Australians whether Indigenous Australians should be included in official population counts for constitutional purposes.[3] The song polled at number 67 in the Triple J Hottest 100, 2019.[4] At the National Indigenous Music Awards 2020, the song was nominated for Song of the Year.[5] An Alice Ivy remix was released on the Anniversary Edition of the album in 2020. Plum performed the song on The Sound on 15 November 2020.[6][7] A strings version was released in October 2021.[8] ReceptionCool Accidents said "'Homecoming Queen' is ultimately an anthem of self-love - one that embraces differences and celebrates individuality."[9] Dani Maher from Harper's Bazaar said "'Homecoming Queen', like all of her releases, is a lyrical delight pinning her heart resolutely to her sleeve in its vulnerability".[10] Nathan Jolly from The Guardian called it the "standout track" from the album said "Feeling unseen as a young Indigenous Australian must be a crushing and damaging experience, and Plum chronicles this experience and her own hard-fought rise to self-respect in a wonderfully moving way."[11] Versions
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