It’s no secret that being in your teens can absolutely suck, but so many artists have turned that angst and turmoil into incredible art for the world to enjoy. The latest to do so is the incredible Hannah Grae, who challenges the status quo and stands firmly in who she is on ‘Hell Is A Teenage Girl.’ And yes, it’s as satisfying as that title suggests. The song starts off fairly mellow, centering around an acoustic guitar before Hannah exclaims, “you look the same,” with a higher intensity, and it switches into a rock anthem!
I really wanted it to feel like a journal entry of mine. For the first time, I had an urge to truly explore how I was feeling and not sugar-coat it with profound metaphors or fancy words. To be honest, I just wanted to complain. The whole song is a big fat 3 and a half minutes of me being an unapologetic brat, and I love it…I listen to it now and I’m proud of how honest and simple I could be. It really feels like I’m looking back on an old diary entry, and I already feel like I have grown since then.
Hannah Grae
We love how the contrast between the song’s two main sounds mirrors the contrast between who we really want to be as teenagers and who we’re expected to be. ‘Hell Is A Teenage Girl’ centers around a scene in the bathroom where the seeming It Girl of the school, AKA the boss who’s back at it, influences those around her and pays a little too much attention to her makeup instead of how she’s impacting her peers.
You could even argue that the It Girl isn’t a girl at all but a personification of the standards women are held to, especially in their teens when they’re trying to figure out who they truly are. Your teen years are a time when you’re juggling school, friendships, and figuring out what you want in life… but ridiculous beauty standards add even more pressure that no one should have to worry about. Teenage girls are put through hell on so many levels, but even then, they have the fire to fight back against social standards and become hell in their own ways.
We could really see Jenny Humphrey from Gossip Girl jamming out to this song in her first years at Constance Billard – come on, “prom queen so keen to ruin everyone’s life” totally sounds like something she’d say about Blair Waldorf! And “she walked from the mirror as I took her place” would so match up with the arc where Blair loses her Queen B status as Jenny rises to the top.
We wish we could’ve had a song like ‘Hell Is A Teenage Girl’ to help us feel less alone in our teens! That rock climax would’ve gotten us through so many hard times, and we’re glad we at least have it now to channel our inner teenage girl and fight back against anything that’s getting us down.
Now we wanna hear from you! What do you think of ‘Hell Is A Teenage Girl?’ What’s your favorite lyric? Let us know in the comments below, or hit us up on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter! And for more sweet music recs you need on your playlist, click here.
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