It's Okay to Cry

"It's Okay to Cry" is a song recorded by the English musician Sophie. It was released on 19 October 2017 as the first single from the artist's debut studio album, Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides (2018), accompanied by a music video. This was the first time Sophie's vocals were featured in her work.^[1]

"It's Okay to Cry"
Single by Sophie
from the album Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides
Released	19 October 2017 (2017-10-19)
Length	3:50
Label	Future Classic
Songwriter(s)	Sophie Xeon
Producer(s)	Sophie Xeon
Sophie singles chronology
"Vyzee" (2015) "It's Okay to Cry" (2017) "Ponyboy" (2017)

Background and release

Early in the artist's career, Sophie was noted for her reclusive nature, rarely giving interviews and using press photos that obscured her appearance.^[2] She was widely believed to be a cisgender man and was criticized for "gender appropriation" for drawing from hyperfeminine aesthetics and performing under the name Sophie.^[3]

"It's Okay to Cry" and the accompanying music video, both released on 19 October 2017, are the first works by Sophie to feature her own face and voice and were interpreted by many as the artist's first public acknowledgement of her transgender identity.^[3]

Music video

In the self-directed music video for "It's Okay to Cry", Sophie appears for the first time in the artist's own work, singing in front of the sky as the weather changes.^[4]

Critical reception

Vice music critic Lauren O'Neill praised "It's Okay to Cry" as a new stylistic direction for Sophie.^[5] "It's Okay to Cry" was featured as one of the artist's best songs in lists published by The Guardian and Billboard.^[6][7] Frequent Sophie collaborator Charli XCX included the song "So I" on her 2024 studio album Brat as a tribute to Sophie, with lyrics that refer to "It's Okay to Cry."^[8]

Accolades

"It's Okay to Cry" was named one of the best songs of 2017 by Billboard, Dazed, The Fader, The Line of Best Fit, and Vice.

Accolades for "It's Okay to Cry"

Publication	List	Rank	Ref.
Billboard	100 best songs of 2017	92	[9]
Dazed	The 20 best tracks of 2017	5	[10]
The Fader	The 101 best songs of 2017	96	[11]
The Line of Best Fit	The fifty best songs of 2017	45	[12]
Vice	The 100 best songs of 2017	86	[13]

Personnel

• Sophie – production, composition, vocals

References

1. Geffen, Sasha. "Oil of Every Pearl's Un-Insides album review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
2. Fitzmaurice, Larry. "Rising: Sophie". Pitchfork. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
3. Lhooq, Michelle. "Pop producer Sophie on anonymity, honesty, and artifice". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
4. Moran, Justin. "Sophie's solo debut 'It's Okay To Cry' is instantly iconic". Out. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
5. O'Neill, Lauren. "Sophie's 'It's Okay to Cry' will subvert your expectations". Vice. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
6. Beaumont-Thomas, Ben. "Sophie: 10 of the greatest tracks by a genius of pop's expressive power". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
7. Bain, Katie. "Sophie's 13 best songs, productions & features". Billboard. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
8. Singh, Surej. "Charli XCX debuts song about Sophie at Billboard's Women in Music event". NME. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
9. "Billboard's 100 best songs of 2017: Critics' picks". Billboard. 13 December 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
10. Alemoru, Kemi; Bulut, Selim; Cafolla, Anna; Denney, Alex; Geffen, Sasha; Gorton, Thomas; Russell, Erica (14 December 2017). "The 20 best tracks of 2017". Dazed. Retrieved 24 June 2024.
11. "The 101 best songs of 2017". The Fader. 7 March 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
12. "The fifty best songs of 2017". The Line of Best Fit. 8 December 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
13. "The 100 best songs of 2017". Vice. 7 December 2017. Retrieved 29 July 2024.