B-Side Guys

Some songs function as both artistic expression and necessary documentation. Taylor Bickett’s March 2025 release “The Crime” does precisely this – serving as a carefully crafted indie pop statement that refuses to isolate violence against women as aberrant incidents rather than systemic pattern.

The Nashville-based, Indiana-born singer-songwriter approaches this difficult subject matter with remarkable clarity. Released during Women’s History Month—and supporting The Circle, Annie Lennox’s organization dedicated to preventing violence against women—the track demonstrates how music can simultaneously serve artistic and activist purposes without compromising either objective.

Musically, Bickett crafts a sonic environment where vulnerability coexists with strength. The production balances intimate singer-songwriter elements with indie pop accessibility, creating space for her impressive vocal range to convey both fragility and determination. This duality perfectly supports lyrics that catalog pervasive threats women navigate daily—from darkened streets to drugged drinks to casual misogyny.

The chorus functions as both personal testimony and universal declaration, identifying existence itself as punishable offense when occupying a female body. Bickett’s repeated reference to “the crime of being a woman” establishes gender as perpetual liability within patriarchal systems, while references to religious judgment (“scarlet letter”) and historical violence (“stones”) connect contemporary experience to centuries of institutionalized subjugation.

Most powerful is Bickett’s unflinching examination of male entitlement’s psychological roots. When questioning whether her aggressor was “born with wickedness” or had it “taught,” she addresses violence as both individual action and socialized behavior. This perspective transforms potential victim narrative into structural critique, refusing to isolate incidents as aberrations while maintaining perpetrator accountability.

The accompanying video—directed by Meg Darbourne with an all-female cast and crew—extends this solidarity through visual storytelling. This collaborative approach echoes Bickett’s hope that the song will “empower women to come together and share their stories,” creating communal response to experiences often suffered in isolation.

For an artist who gained prominence with “QUARTER LIFE CRISIS” (which captured generational anxiety about adulthood and garnered 35 million streams), “The Crime” represents significant artistic evolution—maintaining the relatability that attracted listeners to her earlier work while addressing weightier subject matter with appropriate gravity.

As Bickett embarks on her solo acoustic tour across major U.S. cities—with $1 from each ticket supporting The Circle through Plus One—”The Crime” solidifies her identity as artist unafraid to transform personal pain into public discourse. By naming violence against women as systemic rather than incidental, Bickett creates music that refuses to settle for mere catharsis when justice remains elusive.