As I was driving into town the other day, something on the local standard issue pop station caught my attention: Did that guy just sing about his feelings for a woman, followed by another guy celebrating his love for a man? Did a rapper just drop a line about love coming in every size and color?
In a way I didn’t expect, hearing A Great Big World’s “Hold Each Other (feat. Futuristic)” got to me.
No one may come to consider it a high-quality piece of pop culture, or perhaps even a decent one, but its simple, positive message is worth its weight in gold in today’s mainstream soundscape.
At times, it seems our more mature friends’ complaints about the popular music of today are completely justifiable.
The airwaves are saturated with lyrics that focus primarily on looking hot to impress the opposite sex, going clubbing, getting way too drunk, cross-fading and going home with whoever bought the last drink you can remember.
Meanwhile, all of this is backed by wannabe trap sounds that call for no deeper feelings than one’s need to “turn up.”
While this sort of music certainly has its time and place, it doesn’t exactly inspire much positive reflection during the daily commute.
In fact, it almost seems a bit cruel to be forced to think about your distant Friday night plans when it’s only Tuesday morning.
“Hold Each Other” isn’t saying anything earth-shattering.
Much of our generation has developed a passion for celebrating the diversity and inherent goodness of human love.
However, it is still rare to hear pop songs that place equal emphasis and airtime on a variety of different forms of love.
Additionally, the song says nothing about how any of the subjects look or perform sexually.
Instead, it focuses on the intimate and nuanced feelings of healthiness that come from positive human closeness.
Multi-ethnic and queer love are held to the exact same level of benefit to one’s life as the first singer’s presumably heterosexual love.
While this all may sound cloying and sappy, it is virtually monumental to hear all of these aspects of relationships celebrated so openly and casually in the public sphere.
“Hold Each Other” will likely just be a cause for a passing smile amongst most listeners, and its basic structure won’t earn it much of a nod from music connoisseurs.
And yet, what this song is saying and its very presence on mainstream airwaves shed a positive light on how significantly pop culture has progressed.
sjdickma@indiana.edu
