[Verse 1]
Mum said, “Hold your tummy in”
At the school gate, I learned to grin
Loose skirt, tight mind, pins and thread
Every lunch hour, words in my head
One girl’s thighs, one girl’s hair
One girl’s smile, always somewhere
I weighed my worth on a plastic screen
And hated the shape of a normal teen
[Pre-Chorus]
Try to be neat
Try to be small
Try to be good
Try not to fall
Every stare feels personal
Every comment surgical
[Chorus]
Perfect, perfect
That was the rule
Perfect, perfect
Made me a fool
I’m not a mannequin
I’m not a test
I’m just a girl
Doing my best
Perfect, perfect
Say it again
Perfect, perfect
Breaks me in ten
I’ve got a body
It shifts, it breathes
And every opinion
Can learn to leave
[Verse 2]
Jeans got tighter after winter came
Then the jokes came hard, like they knew my name
“Have you lost weight?” “Have you put it on?”
Like I was a puzzle to be judged and worn
I watched my face in the mirrored door
Comparing bones I’d never had before
Every screenshot, every pose, every pose
Made my own skin feel like borrowed clothes
[Pre-Chorus]
Try to be sweet
Try to be clean
Try not to take up
Too much seen
Every “fix this” felt biblical
Every “should” got physical
[Chorus]
Perfect, perfect
That was the rule
Perfect, perfect
Made me a fool
I’m not a mannequin
I’m not a test
I’m just a girl
Doing my best
Perfect, perfect
Say it again
Perfect, perfect
Breaks me in ten
I’ve got a body
It shifts, it breathes
And every opinion
Can learn to leave
[Bridge]
Now I let my trousers pinch
Now I let my cheeks go pink
Now I let the harsh words pass
Like rain on a pavement glass
I won’t audition for your eyes
I won’t shrink to make you wise
My body’s not a before-and-after
It’s a life, and it keeps on after
[Chorus]
Perfect, perfect
That was the rule
Perfect, perfect
Made me a fool
I’m not a mannequin
I’m not a test
I’m just a girl
Doing my best
Perfect, perfect
Say it again
Perfect, perfect
Breaks me in ten
I’ve got a body
It shifts, it breathes
And every opinion
Can learn to leave
[Outro]
Let them talk
Let them stare
I’m still here
I’m still there
Learning my face
Learning my name
Not perfect
But mine just the same