There is a reason you’ve probably never heard the name Linda Perry. The singer/songwriter has spent her life hiding from the spotlight, hiding from shame and her perfectionism, but mostly hiding from herself. She is best known for being behind the vocals of 4 Non Blondes and their 1992 mega-hit What’s Up?, but the vérité-style documentary Linda Perry: Let It Die Here is as interested in 4 Non Blondes as Perry is. That is to say, minimally. This documentary actively dispels the notion that Perry’s impact on the music industry is solely due to that song while still appreciating its continued success.
The film doesn’t want to be a narcissistic tour of Linda’s achievements and reverence. Instead, it is the story of Linda coming out. As a proud self-proclaimed dyke, this isn’t out of the closet but of the shell that she once placed herself in as a neglected teenager. The insightful and vulnerable documentary places her central within her own story, as the shadows of parental trauma that shroud her slowly lift away, while she steps into the limelight to finally reclaim the credit once stripped from her by industrial vultures.
This review was first posted on June 10th 2024. Full review linked below.
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