Rita Wilson: Sound of a Woman (Gender Studies with Ann Pelligrini)

Singer, songwriter, actress, and producer Rita Wilson joins Sing For Science to discuss her song “Sound of a Woman” alongside NYU performance studies scholar and psychoanalyst Ann Pellegrini. Together they explore what it means to “find one’s voice” later in life, how gender is performed and culturally shaped, and the tension between identity as something deeply felt yet socially constructed. Drawing from Rita’s reflections on feeling “muted” by propriety and expectation, the conversation moves through topics including femininity, performance, language, vulnerability, self-expression, and what it means to be heard — including a discussion of what Ann calls the “Carole King paradox:" the idea that something can feel profoundly natural while also being shaped by culture, performance, and expectation.