Save My Soul
by JoJo

Album: Single release only (2015)
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Songfacts®:

  • This empowering track is all about wanting more whether it be a relationship or a drug. "To me 'Save my Soul' is about addiction and about feeling helpless to something," said JoJo. "That can be a lover. It could be love or any other drug."
  • The song was inspired by the decades-long struggle with addiction that JoJo's blues singer father, Joel Levesque, suffered. "'Save My Soul' is about addiction. Of all kinds," she said. "I wanted to convey the feeling of powerlessness I've felt in my life in an uncomplicated way and show a range of what it might look like for others who've been there."
  • JoJo recruited her friend, Zelda Williams, to direct the emotional video, which was shot at sunset in Joshua Tree. The pair had been pals since JoJo starred alongside Zelda's dad, comedian Robin Williams, in the 2006 movie RV. Zelda witnessed the impact of addiction firsthand as her father had a history of substance abuse and committed suicide in August 2014, aged 63.

    The singer said: "We'd been talking about working together for like 10 years! Because of the content of the song and the way it touched us both, 'Save My Soul' felt like the natural place for us to finally collaborate.

    A group of us young, crazy, creatives drove out to the magical desert of Joshua Tree and got naked - most of us emotionally, and a few literally. It was a safe space to be vulnerable and free from judgment and the need to be/look/act 'perfect.' Everyone who participated connected to the song and brought their truth to the table."
  • Joel Levesque passed away in November 2015 about a month after the filming of the video. JoJo said: "His death honestly felt like it came out of nowhere... and yet I had been mourning him for years... if that makes any sense.

    I know all too well from seeing it around me that the fight is not easy. It's every day. All consuming. I'm not mad at my dad. I love him and I'm sad. He is my greatest heartbreak. This song, which had always been personal to me, takes on even deeper meaning now."

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