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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at TX State chapter and does not reflect the views of Her Campus.

When I first stumbled upon and listened to this classic Lorde album, I immediately labeled it a personal favorite. I loved the way each song sounded so new and upbeat, written in such a beautiful way that I felt each word, even though I had never really experienced what it was about. The album stood out to me, even then, so much so that it remained a favorite of mine for years, even though I hadn’t listened to it in full for some time.

Recently, I decided to change that. I took advantage of a random evening free of plans and decided to take some time to relisten to an album I once couldn’t stop listening to. I expected to feel the waves of nostalgia, or maybe the memories of the months when certain songs from the album were on repeat as often as I could. 

However, what I didn’t expect was to finally understand exactly what the album was trying to convey. I feel like I found it at the right time, maybe even perfect. Melodrama is the perfect coming-of-age album, with songs that align with being nineteen and feeling like the world is so huge. The album feels like it’s following a young girl slowly growing into herself as she navigates new friends and freedom, things that feel common for this age I seem to be in. 

When I pressed play on the album, it felt like I finally knew every single word she was singing. I understood what she meant in songs like “Green Light,” “Writer in the Dark,” and “Perfect Places.” All of these songs have completely different and opposing themes: each is about anger after a breakup, the sadness that comes with going through one, and an endless pursuit of good times with friends. 

These complex feelings are so hard to explain, yet I heard them perfectly described when listening to Melodrama. Even down to how the songs sounded, how they come alive, and some tend to slow down, felt like they could be aligned with how this time of life feels. 

This era of life has personally been one full of lessons. I’ve learned many important things over the course of my nineteenth year, in a way that feels just as complex and contradictory as the songs on this album. This year of life has felt exactly like the album I’ve claimed to be my favorite for years before reaching it here. It almost feels like it was always following along behind me, just waiting for it to be discovered. 

I love how ideas and thoughts can follow us into adulthood; it feels like a beautiful side of life that otherwise goes unnoticed. There’s some excitement in rediscovering things down the line that will be new favorites, and learning all the ways why they are. It’s even more rewarding when these reasons were things that felt impossible to get over.

Caitlyn Rodriguez

TX State '28

Caitlyn Rodriguez is a first-year writer for the Texas State University chapter for Her Campus. She publishes an article every other week relating to media, lifestyle, and pop culture. Caitlyn is a sophomore at Texas State University, majoring in Psychology and minoring in Human Development and Family Science.
Outside of writing and school, Caitlyn enjoys listening to music and thrifting. She loves learning about the world and is dedicated to putting out articles that readers might find helpful. She loves to write in any way that she can, if not writing articles or papers for class, she spends time journaling and writing about her life.