Queen of Romance
Adele is definitely an important feminist figure in the music world. A romantic who sings deep from the heart and soul about love, heartbreak, and second chances. Adele is an English singer and songwriter who graduated from the BRIT School of Performing Arts and Technology. She signed a recording contract with XL Recordings which is a British independent recording label. Her debut album 19 was released in 2008 and was a success as it is certified platinum in the UK and the U.S. In the 2009 51st Grammy Awards she received the awards for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. Her second album 21 was released in 2011 which she won numerous awards for such as Album of the Year, and three American Music Awards. And her more recent album 25 was released in 2015. Not only does she have the talent as a singer but as a writer since she writes all of her music, making it much more meaningful both to her and to her audience. Another interesting observation I made was that her eyes are closed in her album covers except in the third album, which might have been intentional. Here are some favorite songs from each album that are worth checking out!
19 – 2008
- From the very beginning you can feel the melancholy as she sets the mood for a deep song about complicated love. She begins the song “I’ve made up my mind, I don’t need to think it over if im wrong, I am right, don’t need to look no further, this ain’t lust I know this is love.” Already the song starts with a story that captures every listener as it is a scenario that everyone relates to at some point in their lives. Which is what makes her music so beautiful. This hymn to lost love and regret was described by Adele as: “It’s me being hopeful for a relationship that’s very much over. The sort of relationship you hate when you’re in it, but miss when you’re not.” Adele told Q magazine May 2008 that the song’s lyrics were inspired by an argument with a boyfriend in a London West End bar, after which she stormed out and began running down Oxford Street. She added, “He didn’t chase after me! So I was running, just looking at these big wide pavements stretching in front me.” Two days later she wrote this song.
- Another heartfelt song about longing for love and all the sacrifices we make. Words that are perfectly worded and in sync that are similar to poetry verses. Lyrics like “I could make you happy make your dreams come true, nothing that I wouldn’t do, go to the ends of the earth for you, to make you feel my love.”
21 – 2011
- Another one of my favorites! This song illustrates the power of a heartbroken and angry woman. You can feel the revenge in her voice as she sings the words “See how I’ll leave with every piece of you, don’t underestimate the things that I will do.” Feminism is portrayed here as women are frequently underestimated by men. “We could have had it all (You’re gonna wish you never had met me) … You had my heart inside of your hands, and you played it to the beat.” To further confirm the purpose of this song Adele says, “I was angry! I was really, really angry with my personal life up to about a year ago. I’ve grown up a little as well, and I like to think I’ve blossomed into who I’m going to become. I’m not really willing to be walked all over like I was with the relationship that the first record is about. I have the upper hand now, so yeah, the whole record is a bit bitter.”
- A complete change in tone into a more nostalgic feel. The beginning of the song says it all as she sings “When will I see you again? You left with no goodbyes not a single word was said.” Love comes and goes unexpected and unexplained. “When was the last time you thought of me? Or have you completely erased me from your memory, I often think about where I went wrong, the more I do, the less I know.”
- The song that everyone knows and that you can imagine playing in a romance movie scene. Sadness and anger are the main feeling in this song. Lyrics like “the games you’d play … you would always win” and “the things you’d say … were never true”, as the relationship progressed, this darker side became clear “there’s a side to you that I never knew”. The lyrics “I set fire to the rain” can be interpreted as replacing sadness and tears (rain) for anger (fire).
- The prefect sing-along about not letting go even when both parties know it might not be the best. The song starts with the verse “Some say ill be better without you, but they don’t know you like I do , or at least the sides I thought I knew…reminded by the things I find like notes and clothes you let behind.” Then the song continues with lyrics like “I won’t go, I can’t do it on my own, if this ain’t love then what is? I’m willing to take the risk.”
- Another perfect romantic song about fear to love again but being hopeful. In one of her verses she sings, “I don’t know why I’m scared, I’ve been here before every feeling, every word I’ve imagined it all, you’ll never know if you never try to forget your past and simply be mine.” This song has a much more optimistic feel to it as it motivates listeners to simply let go of their past and to not be afraid to start over.
- Definitely sing in the shower material. A song about missing someone and looking for “someone like you.” Lyrics like “I heard that you’re settled down, that you found a girl and you’re married now.” Additionally, this song is about loving someone and then losing them. “I’ll remember you said, sometimes it lasts in love, but sometimes it hurts instead.”
25 – 2015
- The main themes in this song are nostalgia and regret. It is easy to assume that this song is about a past relationship (I had thought so too) however, after doing some research that is not the case. One of the verses in the song goes like this:
Hello from the other side
I must’ve called a thousand times
To tell you I’m sorry
For everything that I’ve done
But when I call you never
Seem to be home
Adele in a number of interviews explained that the lyrics of Hello that she wasn’t trying to reach out to any former lover of hers. She said the lyrics do not address any specific person in her life. Instead, the song is about all the relationships she has had in her past, including relationships she’s had with family members, old teachers, ex-lovers, friends, and even with her fans. Additionally, in “hello from the other side” she is simply referring to the other side where she is an adult.
- A song about true love and being there for the one your love and being their “remedy.” The soft piano playing in the background making it an even more calming and soothing song. Lyrics filled with love as she sings “When the world seems so cruel, and your heart makes you feel like a cool I promise you will see that I will be, I will be your remedy.” Another powerful verse, “Come whatever, I’ll be the shelter that won’t let the rain come through, your love it is my truth, and I will always love you.”
- The soft guitar strokes in the beginning of the song remind me of a Latin ballad. In this song she goes back to her childhood and all of her memories. The song finds Adele singing about missing her mother, her friends and how people react to her differently now she’s famous. “Around the streets where I grew up. They can’t look me in the eye, It’s like they’re scared of me I try to think of things to say like a joke or a memory but they don’t recognize me in the light of day.” Another meaningful verse is when she sings “I feel like my life is flashing by and all I can do is watch and cry … life was a party to be thrown but that was a million years ago.”
Adele is one of the few artists that that I know that has not changed the sound or genre of her music and has kept writing meaningful songs for people of all ages and meets her fans expectations with every song.
ASEM: Writing About Music 