See Your Shadow Songwriting – “I Know My Worth” – a unique sound and ambition

Music holds a lot of power. It can alter your mood, lower stress, make you more productive, but beyond that, songs have been utilized as a way to educate the masses. There are many fierce anthems of female empowerment, recorded by artists from the 1960s until the present, which help combat distorted notions about women, which are deeply engrained in our psyches. Culture and society at large is constantly sending negative messages to girls and women about how they should look and behave. Recently See Your Shadow Songwriting dropped its own in-house made Country-Hop female anthem, entitled “I Know My Worth”.

See Your Shadow Songwriting is a musical creation project currently based out of Phoenix, Arizona. Run by Michael Coleman, aka The Metropolitan Cowboy, See Your Shadow is unique in the fact that it is a collaborative network of talented vocalists and musicians who make the songs it creates their star.

Not only did Coleman and crew turn out a fun, entertaining and informative song, but also decided to donate a portion of the proceeds from the song to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) to help those who have been victims of sexual assault, and to pay homage to Coleman’s mother who herself was a survivor.

Okay, yes, this was written by a man, but that makes the song all the more convincing. “Living up to perfection as defined by someone else. Sure-fire way to lose your sense of self,” writes Michael Coleman, and it sure enough makes honest to goodness sense. But the song is filled with plenty of positive, inspiring and confidence boosting mantras which the ladies can hang onto, and pull out in moments of self-doubt.

Banjos jangle and guitars twang, in a southern fried blend of Americana goodness. It’s all deftly constructed and beautifully realized, as the vocals switch from mellifluous crooning to straight out rapping, subtly alluding to the new hick-hop craze, albeit without the down and dirty, beer-swilling aggression.

It quickly becomes apparent that “I Know My Worth” very much deserves to be considered equally alongside the rest of the See Your Shadow Songwriting discography and not seen as a one-off novelty.

“I Know My Worth” manages to tick most See Your Shadow Songwriting boxes, being heartwarming, melodic and uplifting. The nuanced song craft and classic Michael Coleman leitmotifs are very much in evidence, showcasing his ongoing strength in constructing engaging, meaningful and rewarding songs. The track’s major highlight comes from leftfield, with its breezily exuberant country beat and unexpected rap interludes.

“I Know My Worth” by See Your Shadow Songwriting is big-hearted music, which is pushing boundaries – musically, ethically and socially. Michael Coleman has a keen sense of the world around him. His lyrical concerns have never been timelier. Unique in their sound and their ambition, See Your Shadow Songwriting are not like any other musical project. They sound like musicians working together with creative and personal fulfillment.