"You Don't Own Me" is a pop song written by Philadelphia songwriters John Madara and David White, and was recorded by Lesley Gore in 1963, when she was 17 years old. The song was Gore's second most successful recording and her last top-ten single. Gore herself considered it to be her signature song claiming “I just can’t find anything stronger to be honest with you, it’s a song that just grows every time you do it.”
You Don't Own Me
Lesley Gore, 1967
Lesley Sue Goldstein, better known with her family’s adopted surname as Lesley Gore, was an American singer and songwriter. At the age of 16, she recorded her first hit song "It's My Party", a US number one in 1963. She followed it up with ten further US Billboard top 40 hits including "Judy's Turn to Cry" and "You Don't Own Me". Gore said she considered "You Don't Own Me" her signature song.
Gore in 1963
Gore on the cover of Cash Box, 15 June 1963