Everyone has a certain song that they forgot about until they suddenly hear it on a throwback station and it reminds them of when they were 8, watching “Charlie Bit Me” on YouTube and enjoying a Baby Bottle Pop.
Here are 12 songs that always take me back to oddly-specific moments that I pushed back into my subconscious.
- “Sk8r Boi” by Avril Lavigne
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This song was the epitome of cool back in 2002 when it was released. It was edgy because it spelled skater with an eight and used an ‘i’ in boy. It is iconic to everyone who grew up in the early 2000s and let’s not forget about how we all tried skateboarding after seeing Lavigne shredding at the skatepark in the music video.
- “Push it to the Limit” by Corbin Bleu
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Raise your hand if you were personally victimized by double dutch jump roping on the elementary school playground after Jump In premiered as a Disney Channel original movie. As much as I hated double dutch, I did love this song and every time it came on I grabbed my jump rope and tried to see if I could at least jump a single rope.
- “Stupid Girls” by P!nk
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An iconic song for an iconic female artist, who even after having two babies still shreds on the halfpipe. “Stupid Girls” had a message and an amazing beat that always got stuck in your head. Even just thinking about this song I wanna go to the nearest bathroom and start singing about how vain today’s society is while women do their makeup.
- “Hollaback Girl” by Gwen Stefani
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The ultimate female empowerment song. We truly aren’t Hollaback girls, whatever that is. According to Urban Dictionary, a “Hollaback Girl” is someone who is “all talk and no walk” when it comes to verbal arguments. And now knowing that Stefani was basically saying she will kick anyone’s a*s makes the song 100x better.
- “Potential Breakup Song” by Aly and AJ
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What other song were we supposed to sing when our (now) ex-boyfriend forgot our ninth birthday? This song raised a generation of women to not feel guilty about breaking up with sh*tty men, what other artists could have done what this dynamic power duo did?
- “Soak Up the Sun” by Sheryl Crow
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This is an oddly-specific song that you will occasionally hear in the waiting room of your dentist’s office. You remember being five and singing this at the top of your lungs in the car when it came on the radio. This song was such an upbeat and fun song that was perfect for summer vacation and you would sing it while spraying your hair with Sun-In Hairspray to go to your friend’s pool party.
- “Decode” by Paramore
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Picture this, it’s 2008 and your mom is taking you and one friend to go see Twilight for your birthday before you go to Cheesecake Factory for dinner. Your friend comes out an Edward fan but you know that team Jacob is where it’s at. You two fight at dinner but you can both agree on one thing: the Paramore song was the best song you had ever heard. Paramore has always been an iconic band and “Decode” defined 2008 and the entire Twilight fandom.
- “The Climb” by Miley Cyrus
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When I was in elementary school my mom bought tickets online to go see Hannah Montana: The Movie and got a digital download code for the music video for “The Climb,” so naturally I played it on repeat for an entire year like every single girl in America. This song defined a generation of girls who wanted to pull their symbolic wig off and show their true colors while riding horses with Lucas Till.
- “So Yesterday” by Hilary Duff
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Lizzie McGuire launched Duff’s singing career, and her 2005 album “Most Wanted” was full of nothing but hits. This was a refreshing song that made you feel like you had to find a boyfriend just to dump him and tell him that you are better off without him.
- “One Man Show” by The Jonas Brothers
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Everyone talks about how Nick sings “red dress” in “Burnin’ Up” but no one ever talks about how he sings “I’m a one-man show” and it’s disappointing. This song was a hidden gem on the 2008 album “A Little Bit Longer,” which had nothing but hit after hit on it.
- “He Said She Said” by Ashley Tisdale
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This song defined the fourth grade for me. Suite Life of Zack and Cody was about to be in its last season and Tisdale’s popularity shot up after the premiere of “High School Musical” the year before.
- “La La Land” by Demi Lovato
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Lovato was the bad girl of Disney Channel, and she let everyone know that when she publicly complained about the LA lifestyle in this hit song. This song showed a new side of Lovato besides the always happy and sweet Sonny Munroe, the LA actress hopeful whose sho didn’t get enough seasons.
Some honorable mentions: “Kissin’ U” by Miranda Cosgrove, “Tell Me Something I Don’t Know,” by Selena Gomez, “Don’t Trust Me” by 3OH!3, “Ridin’ Solo” by Jason Derulo, “Stereo Hearts” by Gym Class Heroes featuring Adam Levine and “Walk Away” by Kelly Clarkson.
There are so many songs that we grew up listening to, and if I had a chance to list them all I would, but instead you can check out our Nostalgia Spotify playlist. I hope these songs bring you back to your childhood and remind you of simpler times.