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bass persuades lyrics
bass persuades lyrics
Miley via YouTube
Culture > Entertainment

Miley’s “Bass Persuades” Lyrics Basically Tell Gen Zers To Get Off Their Phones

Everyone, stop what you’re doing: Mother has spoken. And she wants us to dance. On Sept. 3, Miley Cyrus released the first single for her new album, Something Beautiful, called “Bass Persuades,” along with a spicy, high-octane music video. And the key takeaway from the “Bass Persuades” lyrics? She’s calling for people to put down their phones and live in the moment.

“Bass Persuades” is just one example of the many reasons why Miley Cyrus is iconic enough to go by just her first name (ICYMI, she recently dropped the “Cyrus” from her stage name). It’s also the reason she might be the one to get everyone to the dance floor this fall.

Opening the song, Miley sings, “Step into the scene, you won’t catch an eye/ Walk into the party like the party is mine/ Paving over pastures ‘cause horses are gone/ Forgetting there’s a world when this record is on.” The line “Paving over pastures ‘cause horses are gone” alludes to the old making way for the new, and things getting lost along the way, but forgetting all about those troubles when “this record is on.”

That desire for escapism continues with, “Spin it for a minute, make it all disappear/ If we ain’t moving baby, baby, why are we here?” Obvi, this could be referencing that feeling when you fully embrace the music and forget about the world for a minute, but it could be far more existential — if you’re not moving, dancing, and participating in what’s around you, what’s the point of anything?

Nowhere is the ethos of the song more clear than in the chorus, which starts by repeating the same line over again, emphasizing, “The kids don’t wanna dance, the kids don’t wanna dance (Mhm)/ The kids don’t wanna dance, the kids don’t wanna dance.” Whether this lack of dancing is due to missing out on all the new hits to dance to while doomscrolling or out of fear of appearing “cringe,” the takeaway is clear: Gen Zers (aka “the kids”) don’t frequent clubs as often as previous generations.

Verse 2 also feels like a direct callout, with no way to avoid a bit of self-reflection. Miley sings, “Glued your eyes to the telephone screen/ But you missed the hit without MTV/ Go analog (Yeah) like a cinema (Yeah)/ Just look out the window and what do you see?” This once again refers to missing out on the hits worth dancing to by being too locked in on a device. And Miley’s advice? “Go analog” and turn your phone off like you are in a “cinema.” Or, of course, to just “look out the window.” She then goes on to reference her 2013 hit “We Can’t Stop” in the following lines, “In the treetops, it’s a clear shot/ Yeah, chaos is king, but you know that you can’t stop, won’t stop/ New fit is a monster/ Love it so much, go hang it on a poster.” 

Miley launches into the next chorus, with this one being a little longer than the first, as she continues to repeat the line, “the kids don’t wanna dance,” with the backing vocals asking, “Don’t you want to dance?” It’s almost as if Miley is attempting to coax the masses to the floor, getting them to answer “why” they don’t want to dance. Sometimes, there isn’t a clear answer, as Miley sings in the interlude, “You feel something in the music/ You don’t know what it is/ But I can see it in your eyes/ You want to lose yourself to this, let’s go.” This is the bass persuading you to the floor without reason, succumbing to the desire to dance.

“Bass Persuades” ends with a third chorus, driving home that “the kids don’t wanna dance,” ending with the lines “We can’t stay like this forever (Mhm)/ Wait forever, surrender, put our bodies close together, uh.” The ending lyrics emphasize “surrendering” to the music, to dance, and overcoming the fear of judgment, no matter how long it takes. However, if Miley is telling you to put the phone down and dance, then it’s time to dance.

Eliza Disbrow

Washington '26

Eliza Disbrow is a recent graduate from the University of Washington, majoring in International Studies: European Studies with a double minor in Spanish and business. Eliza was a writer for the University of Washington chapter and is currently writing for National HerCampus, covering a variety of topics, from music, books, social media, politics, to anime.

Beyond Her Campus, Eliza serveed as the co-president of the University of Washington Euro Club, participated in the University of Washington Women in Business club, and worked part-time at Evereve, where she is now full-time.

In her free time, Eliza can be seen taking in the sights of Seattle on any of the available forms of public transportation, normally with a book in hand and headphones in her ears. She plays guitar and bass, mainly as an excuse to play either Fall Out Boy or Ghost to family and friends. Additionally, she is perhaps the number-one super fan of "Last Week Tonight with John Oliver," somehow able to quote or recall episodes ranging from the most recent release or from three years ago.