Found in the Inbox: Janet Devlin Logs Off on “Outernet Song

Janet Devlin first caught the public’s attention on Series 8 of The X Factor UK in 2011, where, the Rive Video Promotion campaign for “Outernet Song” notes, the singer from Northern Ireland topped the public vote for four consecutive weeks before finishing fifth and starting an independent career. The 2015 debut album Running With Scissors followed in North America.

A song about the scroll

“Outernet Song,” released October 7, 2016 on OK!Good Records, pairs Janet’s distinctive voice and ukulele with one of the catchiest choruses of the year, and takes on our obsession with the internet and social media. The writing started at 19, with verses added over the years in response to criticism in YouTube comments. “I discovered negative remarks about my appearance, unkind assessments of my talents, and apparently being over the hill at age 20!” Janet says. “I soon became pretty desensitized to it all and learnt to ignore them; but not before writing down how I felt to help me process my feelings and move on.”

Pressing pause

Could an artist with such a strong online following take the digital detox the song describes? Janet thinks so. “Just a small break is a window to re-evaluate. Press the pause button on the never-ending scroll and go out and do something other than waiting for notifications, emails, or likes. Then come back to the magnificent world that is the Internet and see it for what it really is.”

Why it was in the inbox

A YouTube-born career writing a song about logging off is the kind of honesty the campaign promised.

Watch the official video

Quotes and release details from Rive Video Promotion’s campaign for “Outernet Song.” This feature updates Exposed Vocals’ original October 2016 post.