I have been a fan of Olivia Rodrigo since she was on Bizaardvark on Disney Channel. She was my number one artist on Spotify Wrapped in 2021 because of her debut album SOUR. Even though SOUR was a no-skip album, GUTS is even better. It is difficult for me to pick just one lyric out of her whole album that resonates with my teenage, but if I had to pick one, it would be “and I say I don't care, I say that I'm fine” from “the grudge.” In more recent years as a teenager, I have related to this lyric closely. I have been so focused on other people’s well-being that I forget to care for myself a little. For the past few years, since Covid, my grandparents have lived with my parents and me. They both have a lot of health issues and must be taken to doctor’s appointments or even the hospital. My grandpa had a lot of complications in his health, and my dad had to take care of him there. During his stay at the hospital, my mom was working, so I was left to take care of my grandma and to do some of the house chores while also balancing my schoolwork. Most of the time I have been a teenager, I have been living with my grandparents and have been living this life of taking care of them above myself. So, I feel like this lyric really represents how my teenage years have been like. As a child of immigrant Chinese parents, I am expected to show the utmost respect for my elders, so I have to deal with whatever they do. They have not treated me or my parents well, but as the grandkid of them, I must show respect and care for them regardless of how they treat me. My response to whoever asks me how I am is always, “I’m fine.” Overall, Olivia Rodrigo has been an artist I admire, and I love all her music. The music from GUTS has been much more relatable than the songs from SOUR. GUTS also has a song titled “teenage dream” that has a lyric that stood out to me as well. The line is “They all say that it gets better, it gets better, but what if I don’t.” I think this has also encapsulated my teenage experience because I feel like I am always chasing something better than what I have now, but sometimes it is hard always to be optimistic. Sometimes, I think everyone is just echoing the same message that everything will get better, but sometimes I think, “What if this is it, what if this is all life will be.” As a teenager, it feels like this is the time we should be cherishing and thriving in, but sometimes that is not the case. Not every experience is the same, so this lyric resonated with me because I also get the feeling that maybe I am not enough or living my life to the fullest.

I am firmly Team Conrad. Without a doubt, he is the better option if you are choosing between him and Jeremiah. Conrad has been Belly’s crush since she was a child. He has always loved and cared for her in many ways over the years. In one of the very first scenes of the show, they show a flashback of Steven and Jeremiah throwing around a muffin Belly wanted to eat, but once they threw it to Conrad, he immediately gave it to her. In another flashback, Conrad is teaching Belly about infinity and its endless possibilities. For Belly’s 16th birthday, he got her an infinity necklace that showed that he remembered its importance to their relationship. He remembers the little details about her. Throughout the first season, Conrad had no idea Belly and Jeremiah had something going on and that Jeremiah liked her. While Jeremiah knew the whole time that Belly and Conrad had something going on. Jeremiah even went to the lengths of sabotaging a kiss Belly and Conrad almost shared by launching a firework at them. Jeremiah did not have any interest in Belly until she got “pretty,” and Conrad showed real interest in her. When Belly was dating Cam, Jeremiah did not have a problem with it, he even said he liked him. But when she started getting signs from Conrad that they could be something, Jeremiah did as much as he could to sabotage them. He also told Nicole that Conrad would love to go to a music festival with her just to get Conrad out of his way. He went behind his brother’s back and kissed Belly in the pool. Jeremiah always talks about Conrad in a negative light, while Conrad never says anything bad about Jeremiah. In the beginning of the second season, Belly broke up with Jeremiah to be with Conrad, but his reaction was harsh. He told Belly that Conrad was going to break her heart. While in the first season, when Belly was taking Jeremiah to the Debutant Ball, Conrad said he was the right choice. Overall, Jeremiah is a toxic guy, he manipulates people, especially Belly. In the second season, they had a big fight about them not talking after the summer and he blamed her. The whole school year, Belly was trying to contact Jeremiah and talk to him, especially about his mother’s death, but he did not answer. When they fought, he blamed Belly for not being there for him when his mom was dying, but he was the one who did not answer her calls and texts. She was seeking him out, worrying about him, but his ego was too bruised from what happened over the summer that he did not answer her. Conrad was a great boyfriend; he drove 5 hours to see her and another 5 hours to take her to Cousin’s Beach. Cinematically, Jenny Han makes sure to play the music that is fitting of the event taking place, and she decided to play “Invisible String” by Taylor Swift during a Belly and Conrad moment. The song talks about how there was always an invisible string tying these two people together. Another song that played during one of their moments was “This Love” by Taylor Swift, which is about loving someone and letting them go, but ultimately, they will come back. “Never Really Over” by Katy Perry is also played in a Belly and Conrad scene, this represents that their relationship is not over. All these song choices show that they are supposed to end up together in the end.

Taylor Swift has been a huge part of my life this past year. I have been looking forward to the release of 1989 (Taylor’s Version) for some time now. As I was listening to the album, I skipped directly to the “From the Vault” tracks because they are brand new songs we have not heard before. I was blown away by all of them, but I related most with the song “Now That We Don’t Talk (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault).” This song resonated with me in thinking about past friendships and feeling underappreciated. The lyric “Remind myself the more I gave, you’d want me less” resonated with me because when I look back on my year, I have had these friendships where I have been doing so much work to keep that friendship, while they are not working as hard. I have been friends with these people for over a year, but the more I tried to show them my value, the more they distanced themselves. In May of this year, I finally came to the realization that they do not value me as much as I value them. So, I finally cut ties and found better friends. I thought that this line related to how I felt at the time. But, with any decision I found myself doubting my choice. When I left my friends, I thought they would be wondering what happened and why I left, but they did not even question it. It felt as if it was their plan all along, to kick me out. So, naturally, I had some regrets because I did not want it to seem like they forced me out, so I talked to my mom about it and the line from the song: “I called my mom, she said it was for the best” was exactly what my mom said. She told me that my old friends were not seeing me for who I truly was and that they did not deserve me. In getting through the mental aspect of leaving a group of friends I had for so long, Taylor Swift really boosted my mood. When I was feeling down and wanted to be cheered up, I would listen to 1989. When I was feeling down and wanted to wallow, I could listen to Folklore. Her beautiful songwriting can capture any feeling I am feeling. There is always a song that I could relate to. “Now That We Don’t Talk (Taylor’s Version) (From the Vault)” would definitely be the main song on my soundtrack, but another one would be "Welcome to New York (Taylor's Version)." This song stands for new opportunities and new adventures. I am starting my new adventure in my first year of college. Although I am not in New York, I moved pretty far away from home where there is a different culture and people. I think the lyric "It's a new soundtrack, I could dance to this beat, beat" resonated with me because I am beginning a new journey that I am excited for. Everything is new and it is a fresh start to be the person I want to be.