The Story Behind Selena’s New Song Is Heartbreaking But Hopeful

Selena Gomez is baring her soul. On Nov. 3, the singer released her moving ballad, “My Mind & Me,” which accompanies her documentary of the same name. The film premiered on AppleTV+ on Nov. 4 and offered an intimate glimpse into Gomez’s mental and physical health struggles over the last six years. Lyrically, this new track expands upon those themes, and it’s one of her most stunning releases to date.

Gomez originally teased “My Mind & Me” in the documentary’s trailer, which dropped in early October. The brief clip sheds light on some of her darkest moments, like her experiences with depression and anxiety while chronicling life after Disney Channel and amid diagnoses with lupus and bipolar.

The weight of these emotional upheavals echoes at the beginning of “My Mind & Me,” a piano ballad. With her signature hushed voice, Gomez whispers there’s a part of herself she’s kept hidden from the world. She’s frightened that those around her would view her burrowed emotions as a “show” rather than the real her.

“Wanna hear a part to my story? / I tried to hide in the glory / And sweep it under the table / So you would never know,” she softly coos on this heartbreaking but relatable verse.

It can be a little intimidating being emotionally vulnerable to those that don’t truly understand you, whether that be family, complete strangers, or — in Gomez’s case — 354 million Instagram followers. The chords steadily build to the chorus, which finds Gomez confronting the darker aspects of her mental health.

“My mind and me / We don’t get along sometimes and it gets hard to breathe / But I wouldn’t change my life,” she beautifully sings.

It seems she’s trying to give herself some grace, because there’s nothing more comforting than nurturing yourself. However, Gomez’s thoughts seem to be her harshest critic, and she’s left on an unsteady emotional rollercoaster.

Even though she’s strapped into this bumpy ride, Gomez reveals that she wouldn’t change her experiences for anything. This is such a cunning, surprising stance and a departure from the fear she divulges in the first verse.

“And all of the crashing and burning and breaking, I know now / If somеbody sees me like this, then thеy won’t feel alone now / My mind and me,” she sings.

Though she’s cooing somber lyrics, there’s a sincere warmth here. Her breathy tone, which has always been a tad understated, flourishes as she peddles between her head and chest voice. Whether intentional or not, these wavering pitch changes evoke the back-and-forth battle she has with her thoughts. In the second verse, Gomez appears to have moved into another stage of grief: acceptance and healing. She sings,

“It’s hard to talk and feel heard when you always feel like a burden / Don’t wanna add to concern I know they already got / But if I pull back the curtain, then maybe someone who’s hurting / Will be a little more certain they’re not the only one lost.”

Gomez softly flips what she believes are her “burdensome” thoughts into a positive. After all, if baring her true emotions can help another person, then maybe this grueling process can run a bit smoother. She then traces back to the chorus, adding depth with stunning background harmonies. Those airy “ah’s” carry towards the track’s outro, where she belts “My mind and me” one last time.

Gomez has always been an advocate for mental health awareness, so much so that she launched her own media platform, Wondermind. In this way, “My Mind & Me” is more than just a tear-jerking ballad. It’s an unfiltered and incredibly courageous look into her new outlook of life: She’s ready to be vulnerable with the world — just at her own pace.

Check out the lyrics to Selena Gomez’s “My Mind & Me” below via the singer’s official lyric video on YouTube.