Homecoming Queen (Thelma Plum song) explained

Homecoming Queen
Cover:	Homecoming_Queen_by_Thelma_Plum.png
Caption:	Strings version
Type:	single
Artist:	Thelma Plum
Album:	Better in Blak
Released:	12 July 2019^[1]
Length:	3:51
Label:	Mosy Recordings, Sony Music Australia
Prev Title:	Better in Blak
Prev Year:	2019
Next Title:	These Days
Next Year:	2020

"Homecoming Queen" is a song by Australian singer/songwriter Thelma Plum, and was sent to radio on 12 July 2019 as the fourth and final single from her debut studio album Better in Blak.

Plum told Triple J that the song "speaks to growing up as an Aboriginal girl in rural Australia", saying, "watching videos on the TV and looking through magazines, but I never saw anyone who looked like me. There was absolutely no representation in mainstream media. That really does something, really skews your idea of beauty. I had to teach myself how to love myself, that I was beautiful and good enough."^[2]

There is a refence in the song to the 1967 Australian referendum, which asked Australians whether Indigenous Australians should be included in official population counts for constitutional purposes.^[3] The song polled at number 67 in the Triple J Hottest 100, 2019.^[4]

At the National Indigenous Music Awards 2020, the song was nominated for Song of the Year.^[5] An Alice Ivy remix was released on the Anniversary Edition of the album in 2020.

Plum performed the song on The Sound on 15 November 2020.^{[6] [7]} A strings version was released in October 2021.^[8]

Reception

Cool Accidents said "'Homecoming Queen' is ultimately an anthem of self-love - one that embraces differences and celebrates individuality."^[9]

Dani Maher from Harper's Bazaar said "'Homecoming Queen', like all of her releases, is a lyrical delight pinning her heart resolutely to her sleeve in its vulnerability".^[10]

Nathan Jolly from The Guardian called it the "standout track" from the album said "Feeling unseen as a young Indigenous Australian must be a crushing and damaging experience, and Plum chronicles this experience and her own hard-fought rise to self-respect in a wonderfully moving way."^[11]

Versions

1. "Homecoming Queen" (album) – 3:51
2. "Homecoming Queen" (Alice Ivy remix) – 4:28
3. "Homecoming Queen" (strings) – 4:22

Notes and References

1. Web site: Thelma Plum - Homecoming Queen (Official Audio) . PBS 106.7FM. July 2019. 27 October 2023.
2. Web site: Better In Blak: Thelma Plum transforms trauma into triumph on her healing debut album . Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 11 July 2019. 27 October 2023.
3. Web site: Love & War: How Thelma Plum found therapy in Better In Blak. Pilerats. 2019. 27 October 2023.
4. Web site: Here’s The Winner Of Triple J’s Hottest 100 Of 2019. Music Feeds. 25 January 2020. 27 October 2023.
5. Web site: Announcement: National Indigenous Music Awards Finalists Unveiled . noise11 . 13 July 2020. 27 October 2023.
6. Web site: The Avalanches and Leon Bridges to perform for 'The Sound' this weekend . . 10 November 2020 . 11 November 2020 . Triscari, Caleb.
7. Web site: The Sound: Series Two, Episode 3 – Matt Okine. ABC iview. 15 November 2020.
8. Web site: My live version of Homecoming Queen with Strings as broadcast last year on ABC TV’s @thesoundau is now available on all platforms!!! It was such a treat to perform this with so many talented musicians . Instagram. October 2021. 27 October 2023.
9. Web site: The Most Potent Lyrics From Thelma Plum's 'Better In Blak' . Cool Accidents. December 2019. 27 October 2023.
10. Web site: Thelma Plum on full circle moments, rediscovering her love for her hometown, and her next album . 2022. 27 October 2023.
11. Web site: Midnight Oil, Alex Lahey and Thelma Plum: Australia’s best new music for November . The Guardian. 3 November 2021. 27 October 2023. Nathan Jolly.