The most iconic thing you can do in 2026 is take a straight(ish) classic about yearning, gently rotate it until it’s gay, and then commit to the bit so hard you end up swapping the guitar solo for a banjo. That’s the energy Run Remedy is bringing to her brand new cover of Jessie’s Girl, out today.
A Classic Crush Song, Now Properly Queer
Alt-pop artist Run Remedy (the project of Robin Koob) has reimagined ‘Jessie’s Girl’ through a “soft-girl, sapphic daydream” lens, and it fits as if it were always meant to be here.
In this version, all the characters are women, which immediately changes the song’s whole vibe from “why is this guy telling me this at a barbecue” to “oh no, I am also emotionally spiralling in a very specific way”. It’s still got that instantly recognisable riff, but Koob dresses it up with lush instrumentation, playful key changes, and a lot more warmth than you’d expect from a song that originally thrived on peak early-Australia-meets-United States radio melodrama.
“That level of cringey yearning is timeless, so obviously I had to make my own sapphic spinoff.”
The Video Is Pure Camp (In the Best Way)
Run Remedy didn’t just cover the song; she recreated the music video, too, with an affectionate, wink-wink commitment to the original’s famously camp energy. According to Koob, the shoot was a one-day, gorilla-style sprint around Manchester, ending with everyone passing around the wig like it’s a sacred artefact. Goofy as. I live.
If you love the original video’s chaotic theatre-kid intensity, you’re going to have a good time here.
Who Is Run Remedy?
If Run Remedy is new to you: welcome, you’re about to have a great week.
Koob is an American-born songwriter now based in Manchester, and her work often sits in that sweet spot between confessional indie storytelling and genre-hopping arrangements. Her debut album, Xtian Skate Night, was released in June 2025 and explores identity, self-acceptance, grief, and growing up queer in an ultra-Christian environment.
Live Dates
If you want to catch this live (and you should, because a dramatic queer key change in a room full of people is basically community care), Run Remedy has a tidy stack of dates across the UK and US.
The New Colossus Festival (New York City, US)
- 3 March 2026 – Pianos (Upstairs), 8:45 pm
- 4 March 2026 – Pianos (Showroom), 7:30 pm
UK Dates
- 23 April 2026 – The Eagle Inn, Manchester (supporting Charlotte Carpenter)
- 2 May 2026 – FortyFive Vinyl Cafe, York (supporting Katie Rigby) (announced in the press info)
Kendal Calling (Cumbria, UK)
- 2 August 2026
Watch It
TLDR;
- The wonderful Run Remedy has released a sapphic, soft-girl rework of ‘Jessie’s Girl’ today.
- Yes, the iconic riff survives. No, the guitar solo does not. (Banjo rights.)
- There’s a lovingly recreated video with maximum camp commitment.
- Live dates include The New Colossus Festival in NYC and Kendal Calling in the UK.
Stay unruly.
