Christina Aguilera recently released a new music video for her classic single “Beautiful” in celebration of the 20th anniversary of her album, Stripped.
The Fiona Jane Burges-directed visual for “Beautiful (2022 Version),” the reimagined version of Aguilera’s 2002 hit, depicts kids and teens grappling with the onslaught of negative messaging on social media.
“Every day is so wonderful/ Then suddenly, it’s hard to breathe/ Now and then, I get insecure/ From all the pain, I’m so ashamed/ I am beautiful, no matter what they say/ Words can’t bring me down/ I am beautiful in every single way/ Yes, words can’t bring me down/ Oh no, so don’t you bring me down today,” Aguilera sings as several female dancers stare vacantly into their ring lights while applying makeup.
The teens around are seen transfixed by their phones.
Towards the end of the video, the subjects find their beauty with some of them singling the lyric “We are beautiful,” while they strip off surgery gowns, wipe away the makeup, and play in a field full of flowers.
The video ends with a message saying, “In the last 20 years since Stripped was released, social media has transformed our relationship with our bodies, and in turn, our mental health. Research suggests that time spent on social networking sites is associated with body images issues, self-harm and disordered eating in children and teens. This needs to change.”
Aguilera, who does not make an appearance in the video, wrote on Twitter, “The original ‘Beautiful’ video set out to bring awareness and a sense of compassion in the face of criticism. It still carries an important message to remember our core values outside of what’s being fed to us…to find a sense of balance and accepting ourselves for who we are.”
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