‘Girlhood’ TAKES the stage
‘Teenage girl in her 20s’ trend has sunk its claws into music industry
Just a few days before the 2024 Grammys, I skimmed the news of the day on the subway to work. I twisted the ring on my left hand, thinking fondly of my husband, and our apartment and our cats. I wondered briefly how my tax refund might be affected by us being married. It was a decidedly “adult” commute.
But blaring through my AirPods was first Taylor Swift, then Olivia Rodrigo, then Billie Eilish — women all nominated in major categories at this year’s Grammys for music that toggles between feministinspired rage and odes to childlike innocence. A thin pink ribbon hung from my ponytail, just like I saw on TikTok that morning (and just like I wore in high school). Most of the daily necessities in my backpack were covered in fandom stickers or glitter or both.
I’m 25, but really, I’m unapologetically a 20-something teenage girl.
I meal prep and comparison shop for vacuums; I also scream-sing to Maisie Peters and dress in the girlish trimmings of my youth.
I’m far from alone — the notion of the “teenage girl in her 20s” dominated social media in 2023. Most famously, “Barbie” jump-started a barrage of pink merchandising and accessorizing last summer, as women and girls flocked to the theatre, many of them wearing baby pink. The notion of what is often called “girlhood” resonates with gen Z-ers like me who intuitively understand the nostalgic yearning associated with how it feels to grow up.
“Girlhood is both an esthetic and a statement,” explained Brianna Wiens, assistant professor of digital media and rhetoric at the University of Waterloo. “The trend’s signatures are bows and pastels, and flowers and sparkles, in contrast with the tailored suits and the practical block heels of adulthood.
“To that end,” she continued, “girlhood is often worn with a sense of wistfulness, dreaminess, maybe melancholia.”
Last year’s most viral music — songs like Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” (notably, from the “Barbie” soundtrack) and Rodrigo’s “Making the Bed” that emerged as talismans of the girlhood trend — seemed to tap into the simultaneous sadness and joy of embracing youth while watching it wisp away.
It doesn’t seem like that long ago that the Grammys were plagued by scandal and accusations of misogyny. In 2018, #GrammysSoMale gushed through X (formerly Twitter). Lorde wasn’t given a solo performance spot during the ceremony: a glaring omission for the only woman nominated for album of the year. Kesha’s song “Praying,” about reclaiming herself after an alleged sexual assault by her former producer, lost to Ed Sheeran’s “Shape of You,” about the conquest of a woman’s body. That year, only one woman, Alessia Cara, accepted a solo award.
But if you glance at this year’s Grammy nominees, you might notice that girlhood, in all its messiness and sequins, has finally sunk its claws into the music industry.
There’s Taylor Swift at the top of her game, nominated across numerous categories. If she wins a fourth album of the year for “Midnights,” she’ll break the world record. She wouldn’t be the first woman to do it; she’d be the first person to it.
Then there’s Rodrigo. While she might no longer cite Swift as an influence in interviews, it’s clear Swift informed the 20-year-old’s approach to lyricism and melody —
“Guts” is 2023’s answer to Swift’s “Speak Now,” celebrating girlhood in its concurrent messiness and innocence. “I know my age and I act like it,” she roars on “All-American Bitch,” before demurring into politeness, telling us she’s “grateful all the time,” with a flicker of adolescent sarcasm in her delivery.
And of course, there’s Eilish, whose “What Was I Made For?” is nominated for an Oscar as well as five Grammys. The whisper-soft “Barbie” theme directly presses the “girlhood” nerve, with empathy for women who feel alone, or decoupled from their youth.
Some critics of the girlhood trend have pointed out its slant toward white feminism. It’s the same sentiment critics have shared of Swift for years: that her feminism is selfserving or exclusive. But Wiens says that critique demonstrates an incomplete understanding of the “girlhood” trend, and feminism more broadly.
“Nobody’s feminism is perfect,” she said. “It’s important to keep in mind that the history of feminist activism has always been a series of action and backlash … this moment of girls supporting girls is really important. And I hope it’s not just a trend.
“I’m not saying we should believe in Taylor Swift in an ignorant ‘my idol has no faults’ kind of way. I think we should always critique the media that we love. But hating women simply because they’re mainstream or girlie, or too feminine: that’s the goal of heteropatriarchy, to separate communities.” When I watch the Grammys on Sunday, there’s an overwhelming likelihood that a woman will win record, song and album of the year (only one man, Jon Batiste, is nominated in each category). It’s possible I’ll watch my favourite artist make history. Clad in a pink hair bow and Taylor Swift T-shirt, I’ll almost certainly listen to a live performance of “What Was I Made
For?” and cry — I always cry.
But thanks to this trend — however silly it might seem — I’ll know I’m not alone. And on my next TTC ride, I’ll listen to these priceless songs of my 20s and go about my day as an adult. Such is the life of a 20-something teenage girl.