2002Released
3:58

Did You Know?

Interesting facts and trivia about Beautiful. By Songfacts®.

This anthem of self-acceptance came at a time when the internet was amplifying the kind of bullying and shaming that was so hurtful to young people. Hearing the glamorous Christina Aguilera sing in a very heartfelt manner about finding the strength to tune these voices out and overcome our insecurities meant a lot. The message is simple: We are beautiful In every single way Yes words can't bring us down

This was written by Linda Perry, frontwoman and songwriter in 4 Non Blondes, known for their 1992 hit "What's Up." After that group broke up, Perry started writing songs for herself and others, including the hit "Get The Party Started" for Pink. When she started working with Aguilera, she was still fleshing out the lyrics to "Beautiful" and figuring out what the song meant. In the studio, Aguilera asked Perry to play one of her songs to break the ice, so Perry put on her demo of "Beautiful." To her surprise, Aguilera asked to record it. Perry's initial reaction was, "You can't sing a song like this. You are beautiful." But the song clearly struck a chord with Christina, who had to overcome her own doubts and insecurities to sing it. She brought a friend into the vocal booth for support, and before doing her take, said to him, "Don't look at me." "As soon as she said that, I knew the song was meant for her and then the song became clear what it was about," Perry said on the Backstory Song podcast. "It was about somebody who didn't think they were beautiful. It was actually about somebody who is insecure and they're telling themselves, you are beautiful. We are beautiful. We are beautiful no matter what anybody says. Then this hot chick is singing a song and you're seeing all the vulnerability from her and insecurity. I was like, 'Oh, f--k.' Then the song became clear to me what it was all about. She nailed it one take." That "don't look at me" was included on the song.

When Perry first met Aguilera, it was in the VIP section of a club, complete with bodyguard and rope. This is the kind of environment where everyone who enters tells the big star how great they are, but Perry told Aguilera she'd like to hear her tap into her darkness when she sings because she wasn't convincing emotionally. Aguilera seemed a little taken aback and Perry thought she'd never hear from her again, but then a week later her people called to set up the session where they recorded "Beautiful."

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Song Analysis

Key, BPM (tempo) and time signature of Beautiful.
FKey
MinorMode
4/4Time Signature
76BPM

Album

The album Beautiful is released on.

Released By

The record label that has released Beautiful.
RCA Records Label
(P) 2002 Sony Music Entertainment

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