Robyn's parents are actors, and she herself was involved in acting at the age of 9, with an extra role in Kronbruden at the Swedish theatre Dramaten. In 1991, at the age of 12, Robyn recorded the theme song named "Du kan alltid bli nummer ett" ("You can always be number one") for the Swedish television show Lilla Sportspegeln. In the same year she performed this song on television show Söndagsöppet. Robyn was rediscovered by Swedish pop singer Meja in the early 90s. Meja and her band Legacy of Sound visited Robyn's school and were involved with a musical workshop.
Following the completion of her middle school education, Robyn signed to Ricochet Records Sweden, a subsidiary of BMG. She collaborated with producers Max Martin and Denniz Pop. Writing duties were assisted by Ulf Lindstrom and Johan Ekhe, who also helped to produce the album, and they stayed on board with Robyn until 2003.
Robyn started her career in the pop music industry at the age of 16. She signed a record deal with RCA Records in 1994 to release her debut single "You've Got That Somethin'" in Sweden, followed by her breakthrough single "Do You Really Want Me (Show Respect)". In October 1996 she released her debut album Robyn Is Here. Robyn's US breakthrough came in 1997, when the dance-pop singles "Show Me Love" and "Do You Know (What It Takes)" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Her second album My Truth was released in May 1999 in Sweden, with subsequent releases elsewhere in Europe. The single "Electric" was a hit across Europe, and propelled My Truth to second position in Sweden. Despite her success in the US market with her debut album, My Truth did not receive an international release.
In 1999, Robyn contributed to Christian Falk's debut solo album Quel Bordel, appearing on the tracks "Remember" and "Celebration". In 2000, she appeared on the track "Intro/Fristil" on Petter's self-titled album. In 2001, Robyn contributed the song "Say You'll Walk the Distance" to the soundtrack for the film On the Line.
In November 2002, Robyn swapped labels at BMG (from RCA to Jive Records) and released her third album Don't Stop The Music in Sweden. She issued the singles "Keep This Fire Burning" and "Don't Stop The Music" in Scandinavia and mainland Europe. The lead single "Keep This Fire Burning" was covered by British soul singer Beverley Knight.
The decade-long relationship between Robyn and BMG ceased in 2004. When they reacted negatively to "Who's That Girl", which showcased a new electropop sound, Robyn decided to release music on her own. In early 2005, she announced she would be leaving Jive Records to start her own record label, Konichiwa Records. In May 2004, Robyn's Best was released in America. It is essentially a condensed version of her debut album, containing no material from her later releases. In 2006, following her departure from BMG, the compilation Det Bästa Med Robyn (The Best of Robyn) was released in Sweden.
Robyn released the single "Be Mine!" in March 2005, followed a month later by her fourth studio album Robyn. This album became her first number one album upon its release in Sweden. Collaborators of this album include names like Klas Åhlund from Teddybears, the Swedish duo The Knife and former Cheiron producer Alexander Kronlund. Sampling influences from electronic, rap and R&B music, Robyn received rave reviews, and gained the singer three Swedish Grammy Awards in 2006 for "Årets Album" (Best Album), "Årets Kompositör" (Best Writer, alongside Klas Åhlund) and "Årets Pop Kvinnlig" (Best Pop Female). Robyn released three more singles from the eponymous album: "Who's That Girl", "Handle Me" and "Crash and Burn Girl".
In 2006 she featured on the Basement Jaxx track "Hey You", taken from their album Crazy Itch Radio. The year also marked the release of Christian Falk's second album People Say, on which Robyn contributed the tracks "Dream On" and "C.C.C.". In December 2006, she released The Rakamonie EP in the UK.
In March 2007, Robyn released the single "Konichiwa Bitches" in the UK, followed by the revised edition of the album Robyn in April 2007. This version contains slightly altered versions of two of the original songs and two new tracks: "With Every Heartbeat" (a collaboration with Kleerup) and "Cobrastyle" (a cover of a 2006 single by Swedish rockers Teddybears). The second single from this revised album was "With Every Heartbeat", issued in late July 2007 and reaching number one on the UK singles chart. Follow-up singles "Handle Me", "Be Mine!", "Who's That Girl" and "Dream On" were top thirty hits. Also in 2007, Robyn contributed vocals to Fleshquartet's single "This One's For You", from their album Voices of Eden.
The Rakamonie EP was released in January 2008 in the US under Cherrytree Records, a subsidiary of Interscope, and the US edition of her self-titled album was released in April 2008. "With Every Heartbeat (with Kleerup)", "Handle Me" and "Cobrastyle" were top ten club hits, and the former received airplay at US pop and dance radio stations. She was also featured on "Sexual Eruption (Fyre Department remix)" by Snoop Dogg.
Robyn completed a short US tour to promote the album Robyn, and was the supporting act for Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour at select European dates in 2008. In January 2009, Robyn won a Swedish Grammis Award for Best Live Act 2008. In 2009 she featured on the single "The Girl and the Robot" from the album Junior by Norwegian electronic band Röyksopp.
In 2010 Robyn announced she planned to release three albums in the same year. To promote the first part, she released the songs "Fembot", "Dancehall Queen" (produced by Diplo) and "None of Dem" (featuring Röyksopp) to digital outlets as promotional singles on 13 April 2010. Klas Åhlund was the main producer of all Body Talk albums.
Robyn released Body Talk Pt. 1, on 14 June 2010 in the Nordic countries through EMI and on 15 June 2010 in the US through Interscope. This mini-album was preceded on 1 June 2010 by the lead single "Dancing On My Own". The song became Robyn's first number one hit in Sweden, and her fourth top ten hit in both the UK and the US, peaking at #8 on the UK Singles Chart and at #3 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Songs chart. Later The Guardian and Slant Magazine rated "Dancing On My Own" as the best song of 2010, and Pitchfork Media ranked it 4th in their Top 100 Tracks of 2010. On 30 August 2010, Robyn performed at Polar Music Prize 2010 a cover of "Hyperballad", with Björk being in the audience.
On 6 September 2010, Body Talk Pt. 2 was released in the UK. It was preceded on 5 September 2010 by the single "Hang With Me", a dance version of an acoustic song from Body Talk Pt. 1. This album also contains a duet with Snoop Dogg on "You Should Know Better (feat. Snoop Dogg)". On 12 September 2010 Robyn performed a remixed version of "Dancing On My Own" with deadmau5 at MTV Video Music Awards 2010.
Robyn released on 22 November 2010 (US and Scandinavia) the third and final part of the Body Talk series, entitled Body Talk. The album includes five songs from each previous Body Talk parts, along with five new songs. The new tracks have been made available separately as Body Talk Pt. 3 in the United States and Germany. The album was promoted mainly by the release of the single "Indestructible" on 1 November 2010. Body Talk received extremely favorable reviews from most music critics and featured on many year-end lists.
On 1st April 2011, Robyn issued the single "Call Your Girlfriend".
Official site: http://www.robyn.com
Don’t Fucking Tell Me What to Do
Robyn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
K-k-killing me
My smoking is killing me
My diet's killing me
My heels are killing me
My shopping's killing me
My ego is killing me
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My label's killing me
Kick drum
My phone is killing me
My E-mail's killing me
These hours are killing me
My tour is killing me
This flight is killing me
My manager's killing me
My mother's killing me
My landlord's killing me
My boss is killing me
The TV is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
My boyfriend's killing me
My talking's killing me
Killing me
Killing me
K-k-killing me
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My dreams are killing me
The TV is killing me
My talking's killing me
Let go, you're killing me
Ease up, you're killing me
Calm down, you're killing me
My God, you're killing me
K-k-killing me
My drinking is killing me
My smoking is killing me
My head is killing me
My mind is killing me
My back is killing me
My neck is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
My gut is killing me
My PMS is killing me
My E-mail is killing me
These hours are killing me
My tour is killing me
This flight is killing me
My manager's killing me
My mother's killing me
My landlord's killing me
My smoking is killing me
The TV is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
Ease up, you're killing me
Let go, you're killing me
Calm down, you're killing me
My God, you're killing me
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do)
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do, do, do, do)
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do)
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do)
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
In these lyrics, Robyn expresses her frustration with the various pressures, expectations, and addictions that are weighing her down in life. She lists a plethora of things that are "killing her," including her drinking, smoking, diet, high heels, shopping habits, ego, lack of sleep, label, phone, email, tour, and so on. The repetitive nature of the lyrics emphasizes how these things are slowly pushing her towards a breaking point. At the same time, she resists any attempts by others to tell her what to do or how to live her life, which is summarized in the defiant refrain of "Don't fucking tell me what to do."
The song captures a general sense of frustration and exhaustion that many people can relate to in contemporary society. There are so many expectations and demands on our time and energy, and yet we are often given little autonomy or control over how we live our lives. At the same time, the addictive and destructive behaviors that we engage in to cope with these pressures only exacerbate the problem. The song suggests that there is only so much that one person can take before they break, and that we should be careful not to push ourselves or others too far.
Line by Line Meaning
My drinking is killing me
My excessive alcohol consumption is harming me physically and/or mentally
My smoking is killing me
My habit of smoking cigarettes is causing damage to my health
My diet's killing me
The food I eat is negatively affecting my health
My heels are killing me
The high-heeled shoes I'm wearing are causing me physical discomfort
My shopping's killing me
My excessive spending on material goods is causing me financial stress
My ego is killing me
My excessive pride and self-importance is causing negative consequences for me and others
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My inability to sleep is causing me physical and/or mental distress
My label's killing me
The record company or brand I'm associated with is causing me stress and negative experiences
Kick drum
This line does not have a specific meaning, as it is a musical interjection
My phone is killing me
My constant use of my phone or the stress caused by its notifications is negatively affecting my mental or physical health
My E-mail's killing me
The constant influx of emails or the stress caused by them is causing negative consequences for me
These hours are killing me
The long or irregular hours I'm working or spending on a particular task are negatively impacting me
My tour is killing me
The stress and physical demands of touring as a musician or performer are negatively affecting me
This flight is killing me
The discomfort or anxiety caused by flying on an airplane is negatively affecting me
My manager's killing me
My manager or supervisor is causing me stress or causing negative consequences for me
My mother's killing me
My mother or parental figure is causing me stress or causing negative consequences for me
My landlord's killing me
My landlord or the conditions of my living situation are causing me stress or causing negative consequences for me
My boss is killing me
My employer or supervisor is causing me stress or causing negative consequences for me in my job
The TV is killing me
My excessive watching of television is causing negative consequences for me
Your nagging is killing me
Your constant criticism or complaints are causing negative consequences for me
My boyfriend's killing me
My romantic partner or significant other is causing me stress or causing negative consequences for me
My talking's killing me
My excessive talking or verbal communication is causing negative consequences for me
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My inability to sleep is causing me physical and/or mental distress
My dreams are killing me
My subconscious thoughts or desires are causing negative consequences for me
Let go, you're killing me
Your actions or behavior towards me are causing me stress or negative consequences, and I need you to stop
Ease up, you're killing me
Your excessive pressure or expectations of me are causing me stress or negative consequences, and I need you to back off
Calm down, you're killing me
Your intense emotions or behavior towards me are causing me stress or negative consequences, and I need you to be more calm
My God, you're killing me
Your behavior or actions towards me are causing me extreme stress or negative consequences
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do)
I am frustrated and angry with people who try to control or dictate my actions and choices, and I refuse to obey their orders
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do, do, do, do)
I am even more frustrated and angry with people who attempt to repeatedly control or dictate my actions and choices, and I refuse to obey their orders
Don't fucking tell me what to do
I am asserting my independence and autonomy by refusing to comply with someone else's demands or expectations of me
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do)
I am very adamant and defiant about not allowing people to control or dictate my actions and choices
Don't fucking tell me what to do (do)
I am expressing my frustration and anger at people who try to force their will on me, and I refuse to obey their orders
Don't fucking tell me what to do
I am putting my foot down and asserting my boundaries by refusing to let people control or dictate my actions
Don't fucking tell me what to do
I am expressing my anger and frustration with people who try to control or limit my choices and actions, and I refuse to comply with their demands
Don't fucking tell me what to do
I am taking a stand and asserting my personal power by refusing to allow others to dictate my actions and choices
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: KLAS FRANS AHLUND, ROBIN MIRIAM CARLSSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Questionablemind
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My smoking is killing me
My diet is killing me
My heels are killing me
My shopping's killing me
My ego is killing me
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My label's killing me
Kickdrum
My phone is killing me
My email is killing me
These hours are killing me
My tour is killing me
This flight is killing me
My manager's killing me
My mother's killing me
My landlord's killing me
My boss is killing me
The TV is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
My boyfriend's killing me
My talking's killing me
Killing me
Killing me
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My dreams are killing me
TV is killing me
My talking's killing me
Let go, you're killing me
Ease up, you're killing me
Calm down, you're killing me
My god, you're killing me
My drinking is killing me
My smoking is killing me
My head is killing me
My mind is killing me
My back is killing me
My neck is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
My gut is killing me
My PMS is killing me
My email is killing me
These hours are killing me
My tour is killing me
This flight is killing me
My manager's killing me
My mother's killing me
My landlord's killing me
My smoking is killing me
The TV is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
Ease up, you're killing me
Let go, you're killing me
Calm down, you're killing me
My god, you're killing me
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do, do, do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't thank just like 🙂
Questionablemind
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My drinking is killing me
My smoking is killing me
My diet is killing me
My heels are killing me
My shopping's killing me
My ego is killing me
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My label's killing me
Kickdrum
My phone is killing me
My email is killing me
These hours are killing me
My tour is killing me
This flight is killing me
My manager's killing me
My mother's killing me
My landlord's killing me
My boss is killing me
The TV is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
My boyfriend's killing me
My talking's killing me
Killing me
Killing me
Can't sleep, it's killing me
My dreams are killing me
TV is killing me
My talking's killing me
Let go, you're killing me
Ease up, you're killing me
Calm down, you're killing me
My god, you're killing me
My drinking is killing me
My smoking is killing me
My head is killing me
My mind is killing me
My back is killing me
My neck is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
My gut is killing me
My PMS is killing me
My email is killing me
These hours are killing me
My tour is killing me
This flight is killing me
My manager's killing me
My mother's killing me
My landlord's killing me
My smoking is killing me
The TV is killing me
Your nagging is killing me
Ease up, you're killing me
Let go, you're killing me
Calm down, you're killing me
My god, you're killing me
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do, do, do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do, do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't fucking tell me what to do
Don't thank just like 🙂
Joe Momma
cool story bro
shamoo loo
This song is so relevant in 2020. With how the world is. And where some people are at with themselves. F*cking wow.
Des Information
So true, Robyn has always been ahead of her time. It is crazy how underrated she has been during the years and yet her songs are still relevant.
DJ Professor Dan
Robyn battles drinking, smoking, her head, her back, her neck, your nagging, her PMS, her emails (or emos?), her boyfriend, her tour, the TV & much more & comes out victorious!
Z Blackerby
freakin love it! best album so far!
AJAX
i feel like this song should be my theme song haha
LightBumble
Hahaaaa It's all killing us.
Yasmin E
LOL I know right!
Yung Manong
Esquire magazine rated this amongst the 10 best albums of the decade..just heard a couple tracks for the 1st and it's dope. I can see why there was all this hype about it