Pop singer-songwriter Tucker Pillsbury, better known by his stage name “ROLE MODEL” released his first studio album, “Rx,” on April 8 after previously only releasing EPs since his career began in 2017. The singer delicately balances between touching on human rights issues and creating an 11-track ode to love. 

I was first introduced to ROLE MODEL by my roommate, and I’ll be honest, I didn’t like his music at first. It seemed whiny and, to me, the lyrics objectified women and made it seem like they only existed for the pleasure and improvement of men. However, that all changed when I heard his single “if jesus saves, she’s my type.” 

This song was life-changing for me, and it made me a ROLE MODEL fan. Pillsbury has a sort of come-to-jesus moment, but not in the typical sense. He re-characterizes Jesus as a woman and doesn’t just leave it at that. With lyrics like “An atheist who knows defeat” and “If she’s real / She’d wear heels,” he discards the typecast of Jesus being a pure man and instead proposes that Jesus is a woman who wears heels, among other things, all while saving people. 

This theme of doing away with old, dusty religious views continues throughout the album, which I was pleasantly surprised at while listening. In “life is funny,” arguably the next best song on the album, Pillsbury begins with the lyrics “I saw Jesus kissing on the same sex / Dancing to some AFX / He’s so sweet but not what I expected / Somewhere there’s a lesson,” which absolutely blew me out of the water.  

These lyrics combine the church-deemed taboo of homosexuality with the one who saves, Jesus himself. In them, Pillsbury suggests that Jesus doesn’t have to be the pure, good-natured vision we have of him in order to be the good, saving figure that the church knows and loves. He shoots down the notion that Jesus must be better than us and paints a narrative that he has similar wants and needs. 

“Stripclub music” also follows the theme of replacing old religious views with ones that are more in line with the views and lifestyle of young people today. Lyrics like, “And old folks from home say she’s a sinner / But, if God saw her dance then he’d forgive her” reshape the idea of sin and what constitutes a true sin (and that being a stripper isn’t one). 

“Stripclub music” also crosses into feminist territory, which is another common theme of Pillsbury’s album. He asserts the power of women through lyrics like “Now she’s in control when she’s on the pole / Makes a man understand why he’s sitting below,” which isn’t the typical assertion of female power. Normally, stripping is a profession that is frowned upon. However, Pillsbury speaks to the power and success that can come from the industry and how women can be empowered through it. 

“If jesus saves, she’s my type,” also speaks to the power of women, as Pillsbury likens women to Jesus and gives feminine traits like wearing heels the inherent sacredness that is given to Jesus in the church.  

Similarly, “life is funny” touches on the toxicity of patriarchal society with the cutting lyric, “Men will be men ‘till they don’t get their way,” giving a nod to rape culture and the normalization of men taking what they want because of their position in society. 

“Rx” isn’t limited to its political themes, though. Overall, it is clearly a not-so-typical love album that also discusses lessons learned during life. 

“Die for my b*tch,” the first track on the album, is a light opening declaration of love that speaks to the power of the feeling through lyrics like “My flight started crashing / So I started laughing / ‘Cause that’s not how I’ll go / By now you probably know / This love’s everlasting.” 

The last track on the album, “rx,” touches on mental health and the importance of relationships with people. Lyrics like “It’s the ways I’m medicating / It’s the apps for meditating / It’s the way they never work,” has a Gen Z-like sardonic nature to them that is negated by the love-filled closing lyrics, “I guess you’re all that really matters / You’re all that really matters / Anymore.”  

Overall, ROLE MODEL’s debut album “Rx” is just what the doctor ordered and is now available for streaming on all platforms.

MADELINE BRUCE

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