Melanie Martinez is a relatively new artist; you may know her from her song "Pity Party" or heard her music used for the television show "American Horror Story." If you haven't heard of her yet, you'll know who she is as soon as she rapidly gains popularity and recognition. Her music is unique as she carries a childhood theme throughout her album, "Cry Baby." She is not for the faint of heart-- she manipulates the innocence of childhood to speak about the bitter truths of the adult world, creating an incredibly eerie experience. However, as haunting as her analogies may be, the only real fear should come from the truth behind her statements. Her lyrics are ingenious, making painfully honest, blunt statements from the perspective she is criticizing, allowing her audience to realize the ugly truth of things considered normal in our world today. She's bold, and says the things that other artists can't (or won't) say.
1. "Mrs. Potato Head."
"Don't be dramatic, it's only some plastic. No one will love you if you're unattractive."
If you listen to no other songs on this list, make sure you at least check this song out. Her lyrics are important, so pay attention to what she has to say as she targets the demands on women in this day and age to be perceived as beautiful, and how the pressure pushes them to unimaginable lengths to attain impossible standards.
2. "Tag, You're It."
"Eenie meenie miney mo, catch a lady by her toes. If she screams don't let her go."
In this song she tackles the issue of rape culture. With her use of the childhood game, Tag, she sheds light on both the terror of the victim and the horrifying sense of entitlement of the attacker.
3. "Alphabet Boy."
"I know my ABCs, yet you keep teaching me."
On the topic of entitlement, this song takes a stab at the perception of women being any less intelligent than men. A little lighter than the other songs on this list (and on the album), however she still makes an important statement about the injustice of a widespread belief.
4. "Dollhouse."
"Hey, girl, look at my mom. She's got it going on. Ha, you're blinded by her jewelry. When you turn your back, she pulls out her flask and forgets his infidelity."
One of her more widely known songs, "Dollhouse" is brilliant, as she uses the concept of dolls in a dollhouse to portray the facade that families put up to hide their dark secrets from the outside world. She forces the audience to realize how easy it is assume that outwardly perfect situations are as they seem, and sheds light on the internal pain and suffering that goes on unbeknownst to the outside world.
5. "Sippy Cup."
"Pill diet, pill diet, if they give you a new pill then you will buy it. If they say to kill yourself than you will try it. All the makeup in the world won't make you less insecure."
This song is personally one of my favorites off this album. Brutally honest, she provides horrible examples of how the truth is always there no matter how you try to cover it up. ("Kids are still depressed if you dress them up, syrup is still syrup in a sippy cup."). She communicates how fruitless is it to hide the truths that you will always know, since the truth will always be there. She also takes this song as an opportunity to make plain the hold that societal standards and companies that uphold them have on people, and express how companies profit off of insecurities created by hostile, critical environments. The vicious cycle that is the impossible societal standards followed by people altering themselves to fit said standards (thus enabling them) is a horror too often overlooked in the interest of financial gain.
Melanie Martinez has quickly become one of my favorite artists that I've discovered in the past year. Her music took me by surprise, and was refreshing in a world of pop lyrics lacking content. I can't wait to see what she brings us next.
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