Alt-pop artist Run Remedy has released a bold reinterpretation of Rick Springfield’s 1981 hit “Jessie’s Girl,” transforming the classic into a soft, sapphic daydream. The Manchester-based, American-born songwriter, born Robin Koob, reshapes the original’s longing into an intimate, queer slow-burn, layering lush instrumentation and playful key changes over the song’s unmistakable riff.
“I swear if I’m back home driving around South Jersey, ‘Jessie’s Girl’ will come on within the hour,” Koob says. “That level of cringey yearning is timeless, so obviously I had to make my own sapphic spinoff.” In this version, all the characters are women, shifting the narrative into tender territory while maintaining the emotional pull that made the original a pop staple.
Run Remedy swaps the iconic guitar solo for banjo, changes the key twice, and injects witty lyrical twists without losing the hook that fans recognize instantly. “The original video is pure camp, so I basically Weird Al’d it with rainbow kids,” she explains, describing a one-day shoot around Manchester that recreated the spirit of the original with a playful queer lens.
Following the release, Run Remedy will perform at The New Colossus Festival in New York City on March 3–4, support Charlotte Carpenter at The Eagle Inn in Manchester on April 23, join Katie Rigby at 45 Vinyl Café in York on May 2, and appear at Kendal Calling Festival in Cumbria on August 2. Her debut album Xtian Skate Night, released in June 2025, introduced her blend of confessional lyricism and atmospheric indie textures, laying the groundwork for this inventive new chapter.