5 Songs Describing the Growing-up Stage
Life is a cycle of things that we face each day. Encountering pain, sadness, and sick while also encountering happiness, laughter, and smile is part of this life. That is why it is normal not to feel happy every time. It is okay not to feel okay every time cause, after all, the sadness won’t stay likewise happiness. To be alive means to enjoy the cycle.
- Forever Young — BLACKPINK (euphoria & exuberance stage)
Euphoria and joy are the initial stages we face in growing up, the stages experienced by teenagers.
As conveyed from the lyric fragment of BLACKPINK’s song “Forever Young,” this stage is when teenagers have fun enjoying their youth with friends, without fear of anything, live the day as they please so that there are no regrets in their youth. This is the most beautiful and fun stage before growing up.
2. Child — Mark (rebellion & brashness stage)
The next stage that teenagers must face after euphoria and excitement is the stage of rebellion & brashness, and this stage is the stage where teenagers feel that no one can understand what they feel and think. Mark’s song with the title Child tells how it feels when you are someone who is constantly demanded to be what other people want you to be. This song results from what Mark has felt and thought all this time. Based on an interview with Teen Vogue, Mark feels that he is still in high school even though he is now an adult, as described in the lyrics, “Uh, I’m a child I can’t be the person you want,” as stated by Mark via VLive after the release of this Child song. Mark said how heavy and stressed he was, who was constantly demanded by society, living under the spotlight without knowing what strengths he had; this is poured out in the following lyric snippet,
“I’m alert, it’s a curse, yeah, it hurts
I don’t know my own strength
There’s a lot that I don’t know (Yeah)
But you learn when you don’t know (Yeah)
I’ll destroy my responsibility
Until I’m free, I don’t look back
I really wanted to be a stranger, far from this society”
3. Zombie — DAY6 (lethargy & despondency stage)
From rebellion and brashness, we come to the stage where we feel lethargy and despondency. From our perspective, this song represents most teenagers to adults now. Why do we choose this song as the representative of the lethargy and despondency stage? From the lyrics,
“Today’s a present that I don’t want, So I’m wonderin’ in this world, Am I really the only one who’s been wantin’ to hide out from the sun and run.”
the lethargy and despondency stage is the stage where we feel fed up with life that always comes with trouble. It feels like we are living in this looping video where no one knows where the exit door is. And if you’re curious why DAY6 uses ‘Zombie’ as their title track, as you know that zombie is not alive but alive, not breathing but still walking. The same with us, breathing but dying inside, walking on the looping path.
4. Breathe — Lee Hi (accepting stage)
After looking for the purpose of this life, and from despaired we come to the stage where we accept the life that we live. Breathe by Lee Hi talks about how tired we are and no one knows about our struggle, but if you’re tired you can always sigh. You can sigh to let out the frustration or cry to let out the sadness and everything that you bury inside your heart. It’s okay to take a breath, it’s okay to cry and it’s okay to break. No one blames you and you have to thank yourself for working hard and still alive.
5. That’s Okay — D.O. (maturity stage)
We’re done crying and we’re done accepting the life and now that we move to the maturity stage. It is the stage where we try to understand what happened and accept that crying is okay for an adult. The acceptance stage is where we understand that life is about the cycle; life is not only about good things and filled with happiness, but sad and crying that we have to face as well. A lot happens in our life and that’s okay if you were wrong, if you were in pain, or even if you’re happy, because this is the first time we live.
Those are songs about life. Basically, each song tells about a different part of life. That is why each song above has different kinds of vibes and different meanings. Also, those songs are highly recommended to listen to because they are very relatable. When we feel related to a song, it helps us to acknowledge and understand our own feeling. Besides, it makes us feel heard and feel accompanied. Overall, those songs are worth your time listening to.
Last but not least,
— Your life matters, and so does your existence.
References:
N., Sam M.S., (2018). What is ADOLESCENCE (Theories)? definition of ADOLESCENCE (Theories) (Psychology Dictionary). Psychologydictionary.org. Retrieved 29 April 2022, from https://psychologydictionary.org/adolescence-theories/.
Wu, V. (2021). NCT’s Mark Lee Isn’t Too Busy to Dream. Teen Vogue. Retrieved 29 April 2022, from https://www.teenvogue.com/story/nct-mark-lee-on-dreams-instagram-poetry-and-growing-up-interview.
