Jenny Lewis Contemplates Motherhood On “Just One of the Guys”

Former Rilo Kiley frontwoman Jenny Lewis debuted “Just One Of the Guys,” the first single from her new solo album The Voyager, this morning on NPR’s All Things Considered.

Throughout the song, Lewis’ lyrics playfully take on the serious pangs of womanhood and gender policing with a bubbly melody and accompanying vocals by Beck, who also produced the album. Lewis describes the difficulties of joining the “boy’s club” while battling the biological clock or “little cop inside,” claiming that “no matter how hard I try to be just one of the guys/ there’s a little something that won’t let me.” With acute honesty, Lewis calls herself her “only sister to [her] own sorrow” and claims at one point of the song “one difference between you and me: / When I look at myself all I can see / I’m just another lady without a baby.”

While Lewis touches on some serious subject matter, the infectious tune reflects the southern California cool of its inception at Beck’s home studio in Malibu. Lewis describes the experience as “super laid-back – walking on the beach, talking about movies, the Rolling Stones, and French pop music. It was just very mellow and lovely.” Lewis also collaborated with Ryan Adams, Mike Viola, and Jonathan Rice for her third solo album which will be released in its entirety on July 29th.

If you can’t wait until July to hear more Jenny, Lewis is currently on a nationwide tour that will include performances at Governor’s Ball, Lollapalooza, and Austin City Limits. See tour dates below:

June 4 Portland, ME                State Theatre w/ Kurt Vile
June 6 New York, NY              Governor’s Ball (Randall’s Island)
June 7 Washington DC           9:30 Club SOLD OUT
July 6 Toronto, ON                   Urban Roots Festival
July 8 Ottawa, ON                    Ottawa Blues Fest
July 10 Clearwater, FL             Ruth Eckerd Hall w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 11 Orlando, FL                  Bob Carr Performing Arts Center w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 12 Miami, FL                     The Fillmore w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 15 Jacksonville, FL          Florida Theatre w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 16 Charleston, SC             North Charleston PAC w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 18 Alpharetta, GA            Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 19 Birmingham, AL         BJCC Concert Hall w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 20 Louisville, KY              Forecastle Festival
July 22 Interlochen, MI           Kresge Auditorium w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 23 Grand Rapids, MI       Meijer Gardens w/ Ray LaMontagne
July 25 Newport, RI                  Newport Folk Festival
July 26 Camden, NJ                  XpoNential Music Festival w/Ryan Adams
July 27 Pittsburgh, PA              Mr. Smalls
July 31 Indianapolis, IN          Deluxe at Old National Centre
Aug 2 Chicago, IL                      Lollapalooza SOLD OUT
Aug 3 Minneapolis, MN          First Avenue
Aug 9 Los Angeles, CA             The Wiltern
Aug 10 San Francisco, CA       Outside Lands Festival SOLD OUT
Oct 3-5 Austin, TX                     Austin City Limits
Oct 10-12 Austin, TX                 Austin City Limits