The music world has been having a good time these past few months, and it’s getting even better now that Nicki Minaj is making her comeback. Yet, as someone who still drives a car without an aux cord, I listen to the radio quite a bit and from listening to the radio, I’ve noticed patterns.
Some songs get played for a few weeks and die out, some songs play for a few months and die out, but some songs get played every now and then—like once or twice every few days—and then suddenly they get played every single day three months later. These are the songs that tend to become the summer anthems; they grow in popularity in the months leading up to summer, then explode into non-stops replays during late night car rides, beach days, and heat waves.
And this is exactly what’s happening with “Make Me Feel” by Janelle Monáe, “FRIENDS” by Marshmello & Anne-Marie, and “Mad Love” by David Guetta, Sean Paul, and Becky G. Not only do each of these songs have catchy beats and bridges that leave them stuck in your head, each of their music videos share a similarity that outline the aestheticism for this upcoming summer: neon.
Let’s look.
This music video is filled with gorgeous visuals, each of them blending into the other through the help of heavy neon lighting of various colors and hues. Paired with the bold and vibrant fashion, it’s definitely falling under the category of “ornate and sultry,” which hopefully will define the summer. Monáe’s voice is enchanting, even siren-like, as she sings this bisexual ballad (the themes of bisexuality clearly contributing to the color scheme), and the song teeters on the edge between “beach day playlist” and “reigniting the energy at the club,” which will keep it blasting on the radio all summer long.
Next up, we’ve got Marshmello’s “FRIENDS,” which is opposite of Monáe’s “Make Me Feel” in terms of theme, but the music videos share a very similar color scheme in terms of lighting and hints of neon. The pink, purple, and blue color scheme actually seems to be getting more and more popular, and while it’s not likely “FRIENDS” is trying to hint at themes of bisexuality, the colors still follow the neon trend in the way they are portrayed. Plus, those colors look amazing together, the combination will never get old.
Throughout the video, it’s very easy to spot the use of neon signs as back lighting and accessories around the household. I’m not sure how, but neon will be working its way into wardrobes, mostly in the form of bold, one color pieces and jewelry.
Anne-Marie delivers this song beautifully and the chorus, along with Marshmello’s steady beat, makes it perfect to sing with your friends in the car on late night drives. And any girl power anthem like this, especially when that tackles the undying issue of the “friendzone,” ensures its relevance for the summer months.
The last contender for this summer is Guetta’s “Mad Love,” because not only is it filled with the powerful artists Sean Paul and Becky G, you just can’t have summer without a David Guetta song. The neon visuals and lighting again run rampant in this video, but compared to the two others, this video changes its colors to red and green, and it’s imagery is aiming towards a “dark tropics” theme.
The neon signs do pop up again (everywhere) and the video as a whole falls into the “sultry” description, so this can either be a coincidence, or we can expect a summer filled with bold, hot, grandeur, neon styles. Got all that? Good. Becky G seems to do this concept justice in the video itself, with her vibrant outfits, neon nails, and metallic eyeshadow that pops against the lighting. The song itself grows as it progresses, and the drop during the chorus is just enough that it can either be left alone or remixed, which makes a great fit for the club. Sean Paul keeps the hype up throughout the song, and Becky G guides the listener so well that no one is every waiting for the song to finish, it just catches everyone by surprise. It’s a song that excites people and it’s a song that can be played whenever, so it’s all uphill from here.
Maybe a few other songs will join the line up before summer begins, but for now, get out there and prepare for a wild summer filled with neon-undertones, bold outfits, and great music.
