“Labour” is an alternative folk song by British singer-songwriter Paris Paloma released in March 2023. The track is described as an anthem that addresses issues of gender inequality within societal structures. The song was written by Paris Paloma, a British artist born in Derbyshire. Paloma decided to combine two separate songs she had been writing into a single track, which became “Labour”. The song, which was produced by Justin Glasco, was recorded in Los Angeles by Paloma with backup singers Natalie Duque, Nolyn Ducich and Annabel Lee.
“Labour” is an alternative folk ballad. The song features an acoustic arrangement of bass and guitar over a chorus of background singers. The lyrics deal with an abusive relationship in which the singer’s own emotional needs are subjugated beneath her husband’s expectations that she perform emotional and physical labour. It focuses on the history of women performing unpaid domestic labour, particularly homemaking and childrearing, and criticizes patriarchal expectations of women within marriage. The song also explores concepts of weaponized incompetence and the cycle of abuse.
Dressed in historic clothing, Paloma brings out dishes of food to complete a candlelit feast. The man at the head of the table (Henry Hayward) fills his plate and gobbles up meat and fruit while she watches. He pushes his plate away and taps his knife against the gravy boat. She fingers her wedding ring before getting up with her plate and cup, only to sit back down. Then, she breaks a pomegranate open and it sprays all over her dress; she stuffs berry pie into her mouth with her bare hands and makes a mess. She smiles and he laughs. When he lifts his head again, she is gone and her candle is out.
Critics described the song as a feminist anthem, and linked the song to the phenomenon of “female rage” in response to unbalanced domestic and emotional labour in heterosexual relationships. Evie Breese of The Big Issue compared the song’s themes to the 2019 film Midsommar. Prior to its release, snippets from the song went viral on TikTok. The song received 1 million streams on Spotify within 24 hours of release, and 1 million views on YouTube. After the single’s release, it started a viral trend in which women posted TikTok videos with the song where they described their own personal experiences with sexism.
