Welcome!
I'm Clifford Stumme, and I use literary analysis and research to explain the deeper meanings of pop songs. Feel free to leave a comment or to email me at clifford@popsongprofessor.com with questions or ideas!
I'm Clifford Stumme, and I use literary analysis and research to explain the deeper meanings of pop songs. Feel free to leave a comment or to email me at clifford@popsongprofessor.com with questions or ideas!
SONG MEANING: "Hello" by Adele is a post-breakup song about going back over the past and seeking closure. Want to find out more? Keep reading!
Four years after her last album, Adele is finally back! She's releasing singles from her upcoming album 25, the follow up to 21 which she released last. About the distance and the changes in material between albums, she (according to Wikipedia) said, "My last record was a break-up record, and if I had to label this one, I would call it a make-up record. Making up for lost time. Making up for everything I ever did and never did. 25 is about getting to know who I've become without realising. And I'm sorry it took so long but, you know, life happened."
SONG MEANING: "Emperor's New Clothes" by Panic! at the Disco is about winning and taking power or the "crown." It could be about Brendon Urie, the lead singer, coming back after difficult experiences with his band or relationships. Want to find out how? Keep reading! Brendon Urie's the only remaining original member (and only core member for that matter) of Panic! at the Disco, and he seems to be doing just fine. His band's Twitter page announced yesterday that they're releasing Death of a Bachelor on January 15 and to celebrate, they released the semi-Halloween-themed music video to "Emperor's New Clothes." Currently the song isn't available elsewhere--even on Spotify--but pre-orders for the album have put Death of a Bachelor easily in the top 5 ordered albums for sometime.
SONG MEANING: "Cecilia and the Satellite" by Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness is about Andrew McMahon's then soon-to-be born daughter. Want to find out how? Keep reading.
When I heard it on the radio, I thought "Cecilia and the Satellite" was about McMahon's wife or girlfriend, but I eventually got around to researching it and found that it's actually about his daughter. When McMahon started writing the song in late 2013, his wife was still pregnant with Cecilia, who, born in February 2014, is now about 1.5 years old.
SONG MEANING: "Pure Grinding" is an intense song about trying to survive without a lot of money. Keep reading to find out more!
"Pure Grinding" probably has the most confusing title on Avicii's Stories album (other than maybe "Sunset Jesus"), and it's well worth figuring out. The music video (which came out on September 3, 2015) is also intensely deep and brings up a lot of good questions we need to ask ourselves. "Pure Grinding" features Earl St. Clair about whom I couldn't find much except for an underliked Twitter page. The song is gritty; has some soul; and, (despite my lack of musical knowledge--I'm more of a lyrics and literature guy) I'd say, has a deep, grungy bluesy feel to it. There's an emphasis on repetition that really speaks to the song's topic.
SONG MEANING: "Waiting for Love" is about love overcoming everything else, and it may not be the kind of love you think at first.
"Waiting for Love" by Avicii has been out for a while now; it was released on May 22, 2015, and it's still going strong, with over 184,000,000 plays on Spotify. And I'm sure we'll be seeing where this song and other hits from the album rank on the Billboard Hot 100 next week. For my part, I think "Waiting for Love" is likely the most solid track on the album--probably a reason it seems to have been used as the lead single. It's exciting and energetic and has just enough of a smattering of deep ideas and thoughts to make listeners ask some deeper questions.
SONG MEANING: "Somewhere in Stockholm" is Avicii's ode to his hometown; no matter where he goes or what he does, he still thinks about Stockholm and misses it. Continue reading to find out more.
Now that "Stories" is out, I can't stop freaking out. I showed the album to my college students before class today and reminded them all that they NEED to listen to it. Avicii has created something very special here, and it's well worth the listen. The whole album is, I think, an ode to stories, and many of the stories are very personal: "Somewhere in Stockholm" is very autobiographical, and I think it's even Avicii doing the singing in it. You're going to love this song about returning home.
SONG MEANING: "Sunset Jesus" by Avicii is about a young man's thoughts on a rise to fame, as he hopes to one day be the person on the billboard. "Sunset Jesus" references a man dressed as Jesus on Sunset Blvd in California; he's a symbol to Avicii of frustrated dreams and possibilities.
April and Clifford get deeper into the meaning behind "Magnets" by Lorde and Disclosure in this edition of the podcast. Comment below or email Clifford at jugglingcliff@gmail.com if you have something to add or have questions!
SONG MEANING: Jojo's song "When Love Hurts" is a celebration of a couple's dedication to love even when things are difficult and neither member of the relationship feels like progress is being made. Keep reading to learn more!
What's a "tringle"? It's what you call three singles released together. Pop artist JoJo (or Joanna Noelle Blagden Levesque--I know her as the older daughter from RV) released her tringle III (actually pronounced "tringle") on August 20th. "When Love Hurts" is the lead single from that EP, meant to draw listeners into the rest of the album. There's also a music video that includes amazing contemporary dance but may not be appropriate for all audiences.
SONG MEANING: "Magnets" is about a relationship that's weakening. Lorde, as the lead singer and narrator, doesn't want it to end and urges her lover to fight on. Keep reading to find out more! "Magnets" was dropped on Friday, September 25th. The song is hypnotic and dreamy with plenty of synth and an almost African/Caribbean dance floor beat. The song's going to make good dancing for a lot of parties this fall, and the constant refrain of "[l]et's embrace the point of no return" will only contribute to the two-stepping madness.
April and Clifford Stumme introduce themselves, the podcast, CliffordStumme.com, and Wiz Khalifa's "See You Again." Thanks for listening!
Song meaning: Wiz Khalifa's Billboard destroying hit single "See You Again" that features Charlie Puth is a tribute to the actor Paul Walker who died in a car accident while filming Fast and Furious 7. Read on to find out more! The song was originally created by Charlie Puth, and then Khalifa was invited to add rap verses to the song. It plays at the end of Fast and Furious 7 as Paul Walker and Vin Diesel's characters drive separate ways. The official music video for the song shows this scene as well.
The Weeknd is taking the Top 100 Billboard by storm with two songs in the top five. His newly released album Beauty behind the Madness immediately took the Top 200. While "Can't Feel My Face" is currently at #1, Abel Tesfaye's song "The Hills" from the same album has reached #4 on Billboard. [The song is intense and readers should be warned that the lyrics contain heavy swearing. Additionally, the music video is not suitable for every age.]
Released in October of 2014, Taylor Swift's 1989 album is still current news. On August 25th, she re-released "Wildest Dreams," the ninth track from the album, as a single, and on the 30th, she released an accompanying music video featuring an African movie set, plenty of lions, and a story line about romanticization.
