Watch: JoJo Gives Heartfelt Acoustic Performance of “Save My Soul”

Soon to embark on the European leg of her I Am JoJo Tour , JoJo shares an intimate acoustic performance of her single Save My Soul ,” a powerful ballad on the struggle with addiction of all forms.

“I grew up seeing addiction very close to me,” the 25-year-old singer-songwriter reveals in her live set. “Both my parents have struggled with it. So ask a kid you kinda don’t know when the bottom is gonna fall out or what’s gonna happen next. I’ve also struggled with feeling powerless to definitely a situation, powerless to a person, and just certain things in life. So it’s when you feel out of control; that’s what it’s about. To me, it’s like the addict singing to whatever it is they feel powerless to.”

“Save My Soul” was released in a Tringle with two other singles, “When Love Hurts” and “Say Love,” all of which are expected to appear on JoJo’s upcoming yet-to-be-titled third studio album.

A Zelda Williams -directed music video for “Save My Soul” released earlier this month. She gave the following statement with the video’s release:

“A group of us young, crazy, creatives drove out to the magical desert of Joshua Tree and got naked – most of us emotionally, and a few literally.

We filmed this video about a month before my father lost his decades long battle with addiction. His death honestly felt like it came out of nowhere…and yet I had been mourning him for years…if that makes any sense. I know all too well from seeing it around me that the fight is not easy. It’s every day. All consuming. I’m not mad at my dad. I love him and I’m sad. He is my greatest heartbreak. This song, which had always been personal to me, takes on even deeper meaning now. “I try to run but it hurts every time I try… Lord I try and I can’t say no.” Makes me think of the universal struggle of seeking victory over the feeling of powerlessness to a situation, a lover, a drug.

It was a safe space to be vulnerable and free from judgment and the need to be/ look/ act “perfect”. Everyone who participated connected to the song and brought their truth to the table.

Losing my father at the end of last year and knowing the propensity for addiction of all kinds that runs deep in my blood from both sides makes it next-level important for me to LIVE – not just be alive, but THRIVE in his honor. I can do this. And so can you. If you’re struggling, believe the only way OUT is THROUGH. Keep going.”

It has been nearly 10 years since JoJo’s sophomore album The High Road . The LP included “Too Little Too Late,” which peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became her first platinum-selling single in 2007.

For the next seven years JoJo would find herself in legal battles over her contract with her former label Blackground Records.

To keep fans from getting too antsy, she released independent mixtapes Can’t Take That Away From Me in 2010 and Agápē in December 2012.

Once she was finally freed in 2014 , she signed with Atlantic Records and dropped two EPs, LoveJo (2014) and LoveJo2 (2015).

See dates and locations for JoJo’s I Am JoJo Tour in Europe at iamjojoofficial.com .

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