Last weekend, I applied for college graduation. While reminiscing on my school experience, I decided to listen to one of my favorite artists. She has stuck by me in my teenage years and into my adulthood. She put into words the feelings I couldn’t understand myself growing up; her name is Ella O’Connor and you may know her as Lorde.
Why Lorde?
Ella O’Connor made her debut with her song Royals in 2013. At just sixteen, she ruled the Top 100 Billboards for nine weeks.
It wasn’t until 2016 that I listened to her first album Pure Heroine. This turned into a staple of my sophomore year of high school. She captured what it felt like to be an aimless teenager but she did it with confidence. I admired that.
Her second album, Melodrama, is the perfect modern-day breakup album. Lorde released Melodrama in 2017, and each song collaborates to share the story of a young adult and her ending relationship. Melodrama is a rollercoaster, and it’s always there to pick me right back up.
Lorde’s most recent album came out in 2021 and is named Solar Power. Ironically, this summer-themed album was released after her infamous trip to Antarctica. Solar Power was written through the lens of an older and more mature Ella. She leaves easter eggs for her listeners, like in her track Secrets from a Girl (Who’s Seen it All) where she dresses up as the younger versions of herself in her music video. I feel that each song was written from a positive perspective rather than angst. This album was there to guide me as I figured out adulthood.
Eerily enough, sometimes I feel that her music was made for me. When each album came out, the songs reflected whatever I was going through at that age. Not only is her content relatable to me, but Lorde is a fantastic lyricist. I also believe she is ahead of her time in terms of her sound. The synth-pop from Taylor Swift’s recent Midnights, another favorite of mine, is arguably a reflection of Lorde’s Melodrama which was released five years earlier.
I want to share my favorite song from Ella’s discography, why it’s so important to me, and nuggets of wisdom to take into your own world. I hope you enjoy this personal take on Lorde.
A World Alone
In my opinion, this song is an anthem for existentialism. Existentialism is the philosophy that we are each responsible for creating purpose and meaning in our lives, and it’s not given to us by an outside authority. Lorde’s lyrics resonate with this philosophy, and this ideology aligns well with the mindset of teenagers.
Because of this, I admire how A World Alone takes the audience into what it’s like growing up. As a teenager, you’re still so unsure about the world but seldom let it show. Let’s look at the text to prove this; I will cherry-pick lines of the lyrics but will include a link to the song at the end of the article.
The third line starts:
I feel grown up with you in my car
I know it’s dumb
When someone learns how to drive, they have so much freedom in their grasp; they’ve never had that kind of power before. The kind of language, “I know it’s dumb,” is the kind of phrasing you use as a kid. I think this is a nice touch and puts the listener into the mindset of a 16-year-old.
We both got a million bad habits to kick
Not sleeping is one
No explanation is needed. 3 a.m. creative surges were, and still are, the best.
We’re biting our nails
The anxiety that comes with growing up is manifested in our nervous habits.
You’re biting my lip
Teenage romance. What can I say?
I’m biting my tongue
This line is so interesting to me. The phrase “biting my tongue” means not saying everything you want. Is she keeping her thoughts to herself because she is shy in school? Is she keeping parts of herself hidden in a relationship so she doesn’t scare them off?
The people are talking
People are talking
For those teenagers that are quiet, all you see is people talking. People gossiping. People sharing lies. People arguing on the internet. People love to talk.
Let ‘em talk
Cause we’re dancing in this world alone
World alone, we’re alone
Her transition to the end of the chorus is powerful, not only because of the words she uses but the beat behind it. Lorde points out the shallowness of people around us with “the people are talking,” but implies that it doesn’t really matter with “let ’em talk.” I also love the subtle difference between “world alone” and “we’re alone.”
All my fake friends all of their noise
. . .
Maybe the internet raised us
Or maybe, people are jerks
But not you
I like this part. Although there are fake people in the world, it’s not entirely the internet’s fault. People have been unkind before the computer age, it’s not because the internet “raised us.” Maybe the internet has provided us with an outlet for our harshness, highlighting the good and bad of humankind.
I know we’re not everlasting
We’re a train wreck waiting to happen
One day the blood won’t flow so gladly
One day we’ll all get still
And the people are talking
Let ‘em talk
Chilling. This suggests that despite our mortality, people will continue to be negative. However, by focusing on negativity, we may miss out on valuable experiences. This message could apply to both others and ourselves. It makes me wonder if I am prioritizing things that are unimportant in the grand scheme of things, and I think this is the most important takeaway from the song.
I believe Lorde is saying to genuinely forget what others think and live your truth. You can imagine the confidence boost this song gave me as a 16-year-old. You can appreciate even more the reminder of it at almost 22.
Takeaway: there is no need to mimic the poor behavior of others because our life will be over before we know it. Go to the rhythm of your own muse, and let ’em talk.
Isabelle Justice 