Nobody's Perfect (Jessie J song)

Background

"Nobody's Perfect" is a mid-tempo song written by Jessie J and Claude Kelly. It is written in the key of G minor with Jessie J's vocals spanning from Bb₃ to Eb₅. Jessie wrote the original version when she was 17.

On 15 April 2011, during an interview with Digital Spy, Jessie revealed that "Nobody's Perfect" would be the album's third single following "Price Tag" with B.o.B (2011) and "Do It Like a Dude" (2010). She described "Nobody's Perfect" as one of her favourite songs from the album. MTV reported that the single is, so far, only confirmed for release in the United Kingdom. During an interview with The Sun, Jessie said:

"It's one of the most honest and raw songs on there... Every time I sing it I relive the moment that I wrote it about. I think it's important to expose your flaws in music as well as your positives. As it says, nobody's perfect. I'm definitely not!"

It was added to UK mainstream radio on 20 April 2011.

Critical reception

The song received generally mixed reviews from music critics, who praised Jessie's vocal performance, describing the song "impressive, refreshingly real-sounding with a upbeat, uplifting charge, featuring lines layered across each other to the point of overkill." Some negatively described that while Jessie is currently UK's most promising singer to pursue an international career, this song may be her weakest spot and it "fails to entirely deliver and falls short of the promised hype."

Chart performance

On the week ending 12 March 2011, "Nobody's Perfect" debuted at number eighty-one on the UK Singles Chart. The following week, the song fell to number ninety-seven before rising back up the chart to number thirty-two the next week. "Nobody's Perfect" has peaked at number nine, making it Jessie J's third top-ten single in the United Kingdom following "Do It Like a Dude" and "Price Tag". In Australia, the song debuted at number twenty-four on 16 May 2011. It has since peaked at number nine and has been certified 2x Platinum by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for shipments of 140,000 units.

Music video

Filmed in technicolor format, the music video for "Nobody's Perfect" was shot at Nu Boyana Film studios in Sofia, Bulgaria, on 24 March 2011 and was directed by Emil Nava. The music video premied on 14 April 2011 in the United Kingdom through Jessie's VEVO channel. The music video is inspired by Lewis Carroll classic tale Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, Jessie J sits in a banquet table similar to the Mad Hatters' tea party. Jessie J is shown in a hall of doors that gives a resemblance to the curious hall in the first chapter of Alice in Wonderland. Jessie J also rolls in tar and appears dressed as the Roman goddess Libertas, who is better known as the robed female figure of the Statue of Liberty, what could be interpred as Black-and-white dualism. After completing the filming sessions, Jessie J described the video as her favorite done so far.

Covers

American Idol contestant Angela Miller covered "Nobody's Perfect" for Las Vegas Round in American Idol on 20 February 2013, subsequently qualifying for the semi-finals. Fellow contestant Melinda Ademi also performed the song for her Las Vegas round performance on 6 March 2013, though she failed to qualify for the semi-finals.

1. "Nobody's Perfect" (Album Version) – 4:19
2. "Nobody's Perfect" (Alternative Version) – 4:16
3. "Nobody's Perfect" (Acoustic Version) – 4:42
4. "Nobody's Perfect" (Netsky Full Vocal Remix) – 4:55
5. "Nobody's Perfect" (Steve Smart Remix) – 5:54
6. "Nobody's Perfect" (Video) - 4:14

1. "Nobody's Perfect" (Tom Elmhirst Radio Edit) – 3:41
2. "Nobody's Perfect" (Acoustic Version) – 4:42
3. "Nobody's Perfect" (Netsky Full Vocal Remix) – 4:55
4. "Nobody's Perfect" (Steve Smart Remix) – 5:54

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from Who You Are album liner notes.