‘Dirty’ by Jessie Murph & Teddy Swims - Lyrics & Meaning

First teased towards the end of 2023, Jessie Murph finally gave ‘Dirty’ an official release at the start of August 2024. It was certainly worth the wait, however, especially when we found out the vengeful, simmering collaboration would be receiving an additional boost with the introduction of alt-pop trailblazer, Teddy Swims.

‘Dirty’ is expected to join previously released singles such as ‘Wild Ones’ with Jelly Roll, ‘Cold’ and ‘Son of a Bitch’ on the up-and-coming artist's highly anticipated sophomore album.

Jessie Murph's distinctive vocals take centre-stage for much of ‘Dirty’, with the fast-emerging artist injecting an extra dose of venom into her delivery as she warns her ex he's going to get his comeuppance. Teddy Swims’ signature rasp brings another layer of emotion to the track, as well as offering a fascinating second perspective.

Each artist's verse is accompanied by a dramatic, staccato electric guitar riff, which gives virtually every line plenty of room to breathe, with Jessie Murph and Teddy Swims joining forces to take the intensity of the final iteration of the hook up a notch.

“No, whoah

I woke up this morning, kind of mad

Flipped the switch, I had the urge to beat your ass

Mmm

Turnin' up you in a different state

You fucked it up with me all kinda ways, I'm mad

Boy, I'm so mad”

‘Dirty’ pivots around two protagonists that have been wronged by their exes, and although it's never explicitly laid out what they've done, the implication is that they cheated.

Jessie Murph kicks things off by emphasising how frustrated and angry she felt when she woke up, underlining that she's done feeling sorry for herself - now, all she wants to do is get her own back. The ‘Wild Ones’ hitmaker reveals her ex-boyfriend has committed all kinds of wrongdoing, which sets the stage for the stormy, angsty chorus.

“You wanna tell me it was nothing

Why don't you tell me I'm a fool?

Say you're sorry 'bout it

I would be too”

Murph recalls how her old flame has tried to gaslight her and assure her he didn't do anything wrong, before explaining that he has since admitted he's sorry. She dismisses this half-hearted apology, underlining to him that she too would be sorry in his situation, as well as hinting that he should be wary of her as she plots her revenge.

“I got no mercy

You don't deserve me, no

And you might be hurtin'

But damn it, you hurt me, boy

So I'll watch you suffer

Crawl back to me on broken glass

And you better love her

‘Cause that'll drive a person mad

I got no mercy

That shit was dirty

Dirty, dirty, dirty”

Jessie Murph highlights how, despite her ex pleading for forgiveness, she has no mercy and won't offer him a lifeline. She creates the visceral image of her old flame painfully crawling back to her on broken glass, underlining there's no way for him to win her heart again. Murph expresses her hope that the woman he cheated with was worth all the pain he now finds himself in, before branding his actions ‘dirty’.

“Woke me in the middle of the night

Broken glass and all my shit outside

Girl, is you out your mind?

You swear there's something always going on

Girl, go ahead and check my phone

Ain't shit you gon' find”

When Teddy Swims begins his verse, it feels like he could be singing from the viewpoint of Jessie Murph's scorned lover, as he assures his partner that her accusations are misplaced.

However, it then seems as though he's crooning about a different situation, because his lover ultimately apologises for assuming he'd been cheating on her. Swims describes how he was jarringly awoken in the middle of night with broken glass scattered everywhere - harking back to the image in Jessie Murph's first chorus - before his partner hurls a slew of damning claims his way regarding an affair.

“Oh, I told you it was nothing

She was just a friend from school

Now you're sorry 'bout it

I would be too”

It turns out that the woman Teddy Swims’ partner thought he was sleeping with was, in reality, just a “friend from school”. She tries to apologise, before Teddy and Jessie Murph unite for the grand finale, with both artists chastising their respective exes.

It's an interesting twist that Jessie Murph is lamenting how her ex-boyfriend has cheated, whereas Teddy Swims complains about how his ex-girlfriend was accusing him of cheating.

Jessie Murph has repeatedly underlined her excitement at the prospect of finally releasing ‘Dirty’ out into the world, sharing a flurry of social media posts in the lead-up to the single's arrival. This included a playful, retro commercial advertising “Murph's Magiclean”, a fictional “Whore-no-more” spray designed for cheating boyfriends.

(Jessie Murph, Teddy Swims, both)

“No, whoah

I woke up this morning, kind of mad

Flipped the switch, I had the urge to beat your ass

Mmm

Turnin' up you in a different state

You fucked it up with me all kinda ways, I'm mad

Boy, I'm so mad

-

You wanna tell me it was nothing

Why don't you tell me I'm a fool?

Say you're sorry 'bout it

I would be too

-

I got no mercy

You don't deserve me, no

And you might be hurtin'

But damn it, you hurt me, boy

So I'll watch you suffer

Crawl back to me on broken glass

And you better love her

‘Cause that'll drive a person mad

I got no mercy

That shit was dirty

Dirty, dirty, dirty

-

Woke me in the middle of the night

Broken glass and all my shit outside

Girl, is you out your mind?

You swear there's something always going on

Girl, go ahead and check my phone

Ain't shit you gon' find

-

Oh, I told you it was nothing

She was just a friend from school

Now you're sorry 'bout it

I would be too

-

I got no mercy

You don't deserve me, no

And you might be hurtin'

But damn it, you hurt me, oh Lord

So I'll watch you suffer

Crawl back to me on broken glass (Whoah)

And you better love her

‘Cause that would drive a person mad (Whoah)

I got no mercy

That shit was dirty

Mmm, dirty, dirty, dirty”

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