Feminist Christ

"Feminist Christ" (stylized as "Feminis†") is the first song on Romo's second self-titled fifth album, surprise released September 8, 2020 and scheduled to be released physically September 25, 2020. "Feminis†" is the album's lead single, marking Romo's 17th official single release and first from a proper studio album since her first self-titled album almost a decade earlier. The song, a four-part art rock and experimental pop track that borrows elements from electropop, alternative rock, progressive rock and trap, was written about the commercialization of feminism in the 2010s and is written from the perspective of a woman who seeks to reclaim feminism from the corporate world. Parts of the song also address the influence of stan culture on music and the reckoning against sexual assault in the entertainment industry that brought the #MeToo movement to mainstream prominence.

"Feminis†" received widespread critical acclaim upon its release.

Composition
"Feminis†" has been described as an art rock, experimental, electropop and alternative rock song, also borrowing structural and rhythmic influences from progressive rock and hip hop.

The song is composed of four parts. The first, roughly one minute and 15 seconds in length, is an instrumental intro played on the pipe organ. The second, three minutes and 27 seconds long, has a fast paced electropop and disco style lifting influences from Carly Rae Jepsen, Charli XCX, Dua Lipa and Lady Gaga, but with live drums and bass to give a full band feel. Romo opens with a spoken word monologue that starts, "All rise for mass in the church of fierce," followed by four verses, two bridges and three choruses. The third and fourth parts combine progressive rock, electropop and trap, both sections being musically divergent from the second though continuing the song's narrative flow. Part 3 features Romo rapping a verse, sandwiched between a choir that shouts, "I! Am! Feminist! Christ!" in a style that recalls Carl Orff's "O Fortuna", which Romo also used as a reference point in her 2010 song "My Generation". Part 4 returns Romo to singing, with the intensity of her vocals increasing with the intensity of the beat, inspired in part by rapper Kendrick Lamar's song "XXX".

With a runtime of eight minutes and 28 seconds, the song is 26 seconds longer than the lead single from Romo's previous album, "Music From Mars". (Only the song's second section, with a runtime of three minutes and 27 seconds, was released to radio.)

Lyrics
Romo said she wrote "Feminis†" over a yearslong period and it took root from how Romo saw feminist messages of entertainers like Beyonce being exploited for commercial gain. Asked about the song, Romo said, "I obviously am a feminist. Women are as commanding of respect and authority as men can be, and should be treated as worthy of that respect and authority. And as much as I support feminism, the mass marketing of the cause is ludicrous. Owning a canvas print on your wall that reads 'I woke up like this' does not automatically make you a feminist." The lyrics of the song's second section depict a woman who is seeking to reclaim feminism from the corporate world.

The song makes references to stan culture in the intro of Part 2, particularly when Romo sings of a "sermon of slaying" and asks her followers to "kneel before your yas queen." In keeping with the song's religious themes, Romo references the Bible - specifically the book of Genesis - several times in the song; Part 2 ends with the spoken line "She shall be called woman, for she was taken out of man," a direct quotation from Genesis 2:23 referring to the creation of Eve from Adam's rib; the Adam and Eve story had previously been a source of inspiration on Romo's debut album Eve. Part 3 contains the line "There's no going back unless you wish to turn to a pillar of salt," a reference to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah; when Lot's wife looks back upon the destruction, God turns her into a pillar of salt. "And He saw that it was good", the line that opens Part 4 (and is later mocked by Romo as, "Good is settling, I'm going for epic"), is also a direct quotation from Genesis; the phrase is repeated throughout its opening verses to refer to what God perceives upon creation of the heavens and earth. Romo's brag that she is "flawless since the sixth day" is yet another reference to Genesis; in the creation myth, God created humans on the sixth day of the universe.

Both Part 3 and Part 4 contain lines written as encouragement for women to stand up for themselves against sexual harassment in the era of #MeToo, specifically, when Romo sings "Seize the power from the cocks who want to keep us held back" in Part 3 (alluding to women contributing to the downfall of powerful men by sharing their accounts of abuse at their hands) and "When you desecrate our temples / Forcing your hands, tongues and cocks on these holy shrines / And demean us with your blasphemy / About how our place is being in service to you heathens" in Part 4 (describing actual abuse and abusers' attempts to intimidate and silence their victims). Part 3 also references Game of Thrones character Daenerys Targaryen (referred to in the song as Khaleesi) and Stranger Things character Eleven.

Track listings
CD single
 * 1) Feminis† (album version)
 * 2) Feminis† (single version)
 * 3) Romantic

Vinyl single
 * 1) Feminis† (album version)
 * 2) Feminis† (single version)
 * 3) Feminis† (Marshmello remix)

Promotion
Full time promotion for "Feminis†" began with a cryptic announcement on September 5, 2020 that teased that something would happen the following Tuesday, September 8, which happened to be the day Romo (2020) was surprised released to digital and streaming outlets. "Feminis†" leaked the day before the surprise drop.

Romo's antics during the promotional campaign included releasing face masks featuring the single's Venus cross iconography - with the masks also featuring in the song's music video - as well as partnering with a brewery and a winery for beer and wine varieties named after her songs, giving Pitchfork its shortest interview ever when it published her two word response to their request, "Fuck off", and offering the shocking reveal that her first music industry gig was as Elementary School Dropouts member Devil Faithless.

With live music on hold due to the coronavirus pandemic, Romo announced plans to hold a livestreamed concert, Feminist Christ's Revival (In The Name Of The Mother), at the O2 Apollo in Manchester that would showcase her live performance talents despite the need for social distancing.

Music video
The music video for "Feminis†" was scheduled to premiere September 14, 2020, but had its release date pushed back due to post-production issues. It is expected to be released by September 21.

The video will take place in various locations including Romo's house, an abandoned church, and a lakefront park, with the latter location to serve as the site of a baptism scene.

Critical
"Feminis†" received widespread critical acclaim from music industry publications upon its release, making it Romo's best reviewed single. The consensus among reviewers was that Romo delivered on the promise of a highly ambitious, musically groundbreaking and lyrically memorable song to mark her return, expanding upon a legacy that came to be defined by her 2010 self-titled album a decade earlier.

Commercial
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