#ricedeity

The song is about a transmasc Len talking about the "murder" of his prior self, speaking both of the accusations and judgement that is all to familiar to many, along with the triumphant rebellion felt in accepting yourself.

FLAVOR FOLEY just released their fourth non-collaboration/event song since the release of CARDIAC CONTRAPOINT, EGO RENEGADE BOY.

It's, unsurprisingly, yet another banger, this time hearkening back to the classic style of murder-mystery Len/Rin songs.

(My initial listen had me reading it as a straight send up to those until the bridge made it excessively clear what the song was actually about.)

However, this song also made me rethink the other recent FLAVOR FOLEY songs, and I've come to feel that STATIC, SPOKEN FOR, HUMAN, and EGO RENEGADE BOY can be read together as the phases of a trans person's journey through self-discovery. Notably, not necessarily following one character, but as a general exploration of the feelings one goes through.

STATIC talks about a fear of change. The song is literally about a being in the television not wanting to be ignored, (something something Tenna reference), but it can also be read as a sort of mantra for someone to maintain themselves as they are, even if it's hurting them. "This is how it should be." "It's just another day." The bridge lets slip why someone would do this to themselves: "After all, I want to be wanted; Is that so wrong?" Once you start to realize that you have to literally beg yourself to keep things the same, you learn that things probably need to change.

SPOKEN FOR follows the next step of the journey, where one has realized they are not happy with how the world sees them, but don't quite know how to move forward, protrayed with the story of an idol unable to express their true self. "Can they see the person beneath?"

HUMAN, described directly by Jamie Paige with the phrase "bobot transgedner", is about the moment of self-actualization. It's learning that you can be what you see yourself as, and the joy in making that realization.

And EGO RENEGADE BOY, as discussed before, is about the aftermath. It's about the societal consequences and the rush of rebellion. It's about understanding so thoroughly that this is what you want and what you are that no-one could ever convince you otherwise.