Remarks:
My favourite Christina Aguilera song. It seems kind of cheesy and overwrought, but it still has an effect on me.
It seems like she is singing the song to you, both in the song and in the video – but she is singing it to herself. She is the “young girl”.
It came out in 2003, going to #13 in Europe and #26 in the Anglosphere (weighted average).
The video was shot in one go – there are no edits – in a deserted theatre in Los Angeles. The director, David LaChapelle, kept it simple because he did not want anything to overshadow her voice. Thank you! He has appeared in this space before: he directed “It’s My Life” (2003) by No Doubt.
See also:
Lyrics:
Young girl, don’t cry
I’ll be right here when your world starts to fall
Young girl, it’s alright
Your tears will dry, you’ll soon be free to fly
When you’re safe inside your room you tend to dream
Of a place where nothing’s harder than it seems
No one ever wants or bothers to explain
Of the heartache life can bring and what it means
When there’s no one else
Look inside yourself
Like your oldest friend
Just trust the voice within
Then you’ll find the strength
That will guide your way
You’ll learn to begin
To trust the voice within
Young girl, don’t hide
You’ll never change if you just run away
Young girl, just hold tight
And soon you’re gonna see your brighter day
Now in a world where innocence is quickly claimed
It’s so hard to stand your ground when you’re so afraid
No one reaches out a hand for you to hold
When you’re lost outside look inside to your soul
When there’s no one else
Look inside yourself
Like your oldest friend
Just trust the voice within
Then you’ll find the strength
That will guide your way
You will learn to begin
To trust the voice within
Yeah…
Life is a journey
It can take you anywhere you choose to go
As long as you’re learning
You’ll find all you’ll ever need to know (be strong)
You’ll break it (hold on)
You’ll make it (be strong)
Just don’t forsake it because
(No one can tell you what you can’t do)
No one can stop you, you know that I’m talking to you
When there’s no one else
Look inside yourself
And like your oldest friend
Just trust the voice within
Then you’ll find the strength
That will guide your way
You will learn to begin
To trust the voice within
Young girl don’t cry
I’ll be right here when your world starts to fall
Abagond 
I like Christina, even though a lot of her songs do seem overwrought. While she looks nice in this video, the thin eyebrows, thick eye makeup, and fake dark hair now strike me as amusingly dated to the 2000s. Even the black-and-white film effect seems emo in this context. If the video were made now, it would probably be the complete opposite, with neon colors everywhere.
My favorite ballad by Christina is “Reflection,” that song from Mulan. I think it’s better than “Colors of the Wind” but worse than “Part of Your World”. In my opinion, Julie Andrews is the ultimate queen of Disney ballads, with classics like “Feed the Birds” and “Edelweiss” that I could never forget.
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