The pop girlies are sad

Some people have been arguing for a while now that the song of the summer is no longer a thing. Monoculture is dead. There are many songs of the summer. It depends on who you hang out with. It depends on your Spotify. In the summer of 2026, people are still making that argument. But it is a little harder this year because of Ella Langley. Her "Choose in Texas" is breaking records, racking up Mariah and Whitney type numbers, although you might never have heard this song. Maybe instead you're listening to Charlie or Gracie or Ariana or Kim. But Eagle-eared music fans have noticed something. A lot of this summer's biggest albums, biggest songs are like "Choose in Texas" kind of gloomy, a little grim, a bit sad. What is going on coming up on today's point from Vox? The pop girlies, sad, sad summer. Support for the show comes from Odo. Running a business is hard enough. So why make it harder with a dozen different apps that don't talk to each other? Introducing Odo. 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New customer offer for initial plan term only greater than 50 gigabytes me slow when network is busy. C terms, you're listening to today. It's played your home for country music. Wait, is that right? Yep. I'm Newell King with Marissa Moss. She's a senior writer at Rolling Stone writes a lot about country. All right, Marissa, tell me about choosing Texas. Choosing Texas is a song about a woman who is essentially losing her man in real time. So she goes to a bar, a honky-tonk in Texas. She's from Tennessee. She suddenly realizes that he sees his, I guess, his ex, who's from Texas. And it drifts away from her to this woman. So it's that feeling of kind of knowing when you see it in someone's face that they're going to be leaving you. And you're figuring out whether it's worth it to hold on or you just kind of have to let go. How big is this song exactly? It is huge. It is up there right now in competition with Marissa Carey's all I want for Christmas is you. Which owns the record for the most amount of weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 with 22 weeks. So right now, Ella Langley, as we speak, has 18 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100. Dang. Her only competition above that is Shaboosie. And Lil Nas X. What you're also, you know, you should say kind of country-ish, country-adjacent song. But she really could blow by Mariah Carey. Of course, you get a boost every time Christmas comes around, but we're a little ways off from Mariah Carey declaring once and for all that it's Christmas season. So I think Ella has plenty of time to catch up. And it could be the biggest song of all time. Which is crazy. You're a music writer and you're based in Nashville and Nashville is the beating heart of country in this country. How big a deal is Ella Langley in a place like Nashville and in the country industry? She's a big deal. And it's exciting because she's a relatively new-ish artist in terms of how long she's been putting out music. You know, she's been in the grind for years and years like most artists have. By the time they have their breakthrough, she only released her debut album in 2024, called "Hungover." And it's really exciting because as a lot of people know or maybe they don't know, it can be really hard for a woman to make it in Nashville. They're usually played, you know, one woman's song an hour on country radio. If that, if you're lucky. Usually under 10% of songs on country radio are by women. Wow. So having someone like her out there and having so much country radio airplay and presence on the hot 100 and breaking all these records, you really hope that it's going to help influence people in Nashville to sign more women, platform more women, do all of those things to try to sort of flip this long-standing sexism that has existed in Nashville. Not to put all of our hopes and dreams on one woman because it's not up to her to do this. It's up to the industry to respond, but you know, you sure have to hope so. Was it a surprise that Choosing Texas became such a big hit? To me, and I am totally fine to admit this, I would have never predicted this. I loved the song when I heard it, but I don't think I ever thought that something in this country could be this popular. Yes, country music is becoming so much more popular nationwide, worldwide, but it is also country music in a lot of ways that is a little bit more pop-leaning. Morgan Wallen is extremely popular, but he's not putting out super twangy, you know, tears in your beers, kind of country music songs. Choosing Texas, yes, I know it's kind of sad, but more than sad, I think it's relatable. It taps into this feeling that a lot of people have, and I guess especially in the summer, if you're thinking about a summer romance or something like that, of losing something that you once have, of letting go, of nostalgia, I think that's something that we really want to feel right now, and despite the lyrical content, which may be a little bit of a bummer, the song does just feel so good, and it's like a little bit of like a brain weed gummy. The second it comes on and you hear, you know, that little guitar lick, it relaxes you, it sort of gives you that summer feel of like just airy and fresh, and a lot of people want to feel that way right now. But I mean, there's been remixes of the song at the club. You've said she's not a person who shares a ton about herself, probably smart in this day and age, but country music often does get politicized, and I've seen that happening a bit around her and around this song. Tell me about the way she is being slotted into certain perspectives in the US, whether she wants to be or not. So one thing I've seen is a lot of people from the far right wanting to use her as an example of a return to this sort of this anti-girl boss era. Ella is mega American flag emoji, American flag emoji, true country patriot princess who I will forever support and I would die for. Ella Langley wrote a wholesome anti-woke country song, and it's about to be the record for longest time spent as number one on the hot 100. America is healing. They like to take the fact that she speaks about her faith on sage and sort of warp that into that being sort of her overriding agenda and that she wants this return to traditional values. And then on the left, I've seen some people sort of play with the same. I personally think you could easily just as easily make a case that she's a feminist who had Miranda Lambert, you know, produce her album and writes with women and takes all these women on tour. We're just talking about women right now. It takes women like Laney Miranda and me and all these artists that are coming up to stand up and be like, yeah, we're not going to put up with this. You know, so many people want this moment to serve their own narrative and want Ella Langley to stand for something on every side. And if you don't give people a little, they're going to go wild. But maybe that's better than putting your personal views out there and having the ripped apart. So can't say I really blame her. This is a sad song. And I get you. I'm like, it's a very chill vibe and it definitely does ease the brain in some ways. But when you think about it, it's like my fellow fell in love with someone else. And so here's a theory I've heard. The summer of 2026 has a lot of [BLANK_AUDIO] sad girl music coming out and this just sort of fits into a broader trend for some reason, this summer of sad music. What do you think about that? - Yeah, I think that's fair. - Obviously sad is a universal emotion. But I think when people hear this song, they recognize themselves in it. And I don't know if it conjures so much sadness as much as like a communal experience. Like this sense of, okay, I'm not alone. Other people have experienced the same thing. (upbeat music) And I don't know if people are putting it on and crying, you know, into their lap the same way that people are for other sort of sad girl summer records. And maybe if your partner just left you for someone in Texas, you might cry. (laughing) But, you know, I don't know if it elicits that kind of visceral reaction. I think it's more of like a gut feeling, a vibe kind of situation. (upbeat music) - That was Rolling Stones, Marissa Moss. Marissa wrote a book. It's called Her Country. How women in country music became the success. They were never supposed to be. When we come back, the pop stars are sad this summer. What's bothering 'em? (upbeat music) - Support for the show comes from Odo. So why make it harder? With a dozen different apps that don't talk to each other. Introducing Odo. And the best part? So why not you? Try Odo for free at odo.com. That's odo.com. Support for today's play comes from NPR. Perhaps you're curious about the economic forces shaping your daily life. The Planet Money Podcast from NPR makes sense of the economy in ways you'll not only understand, but enjoy. Each story on Planet Money starts with a question. Recent episodes ask why Pokemon cards are growing faster than your retirement account. Don't invest in Pokemon rather than retirement. Regardless, I'm sure Planet Money will tell you that. How Russia's economy hasn't collapsed after four years of war and sanctions. And what a 750-pound robot means for the future of restaurant work. The hosts go to unusual lengths to explain the economy. Yes, they do. They have published a book to track the global supply chain. I've seen it in bookstores. They have shot a satellite into space to understand the economics of the private space industry. They have gone inside of a live book auction to get ideas on how to market their book. Listers of this show may know that I used to work at that show at Planet Money. It is a very good show about the economy. A thing that, honestly, we should all understand, and sometimes it feels a little bit exhausting. A Planet Money does not make it exhausting. They make it interesting genuinely. Follow it in Pierce Planet Money podcast and understand how money shapes the world. Support for this show comes from Core Weave. Everywhere you look, AI is expanding what we thought was possible, and at the center of it all is Core Weave. 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Which of the girls have been said this summer? - Sure, well, Olivia Rodriguez would be a good place to start because she literally has the word sad in the title of her album. - It was just something that my producer Dan said to me, we're having a conversation about just stuff in my life, and he's like, "You seem pretty sad for a girl, so I'm a lot of them." When he said it, we were both like, "That's it! "That's the title, we've been searching for it for so long." - It's also my favorite album of the summer so far. It's an album about whatever is the opposite of Carefree Love. It's Anthems for Anxious Attachment is sort of how I've been thinking about them. So these are not late fun nights of June and July where the dance music is bumping. This is being in your room worried about what the other person thinks of you and whether or not you're happy in a relationship. I mean, it's sort of about the beginning of a relationship when yes, things are great and you're feeling the spark and the chemistry and the excitement, but you're also worried about where it's gonna go. Like you have a voice in your head that's telling you, maybe this isn't right, maybe this isn't real love, maybe he doesn't like you the way that you think. There's a couple of ballads on the record, one called "Begged," one called "Less" that are absolutely heartbreaking. ♪ Nothing's quite enough when I know ♪ ♪ That ticket I bet ♪ ♪ I wish, I wish, I wish you loved me the last ♪ But even the upsongs, like "Maggots for Brains," which I think has become a fan favorite, is sort of about becoming almost zombified by love and sort of what it does to you how it transforms you and almost makes you a Frankenstein figure. ♪ I'm a zombie in my body ♪ ♪ I'm a dream, I'm a foolish child ♪ - So it's a really interesting thing for a young woman to be exploring on a summer record, you know, love we think of as happy or maybe we think of as break up, but this is somewhere in between where you're in love, but you're not feeling super sure about it. (upbeat music) - Phoebe Bridger's album, tell me about that one. It's got a song called, "Kill Me On It." So I mean, you don't get, you don't get bleaker than that. ♪ This is gonna kill me ♪ - Wait. - Phoebe Bridger's is famous for making sad music. You know, it's interesting because she's balancing on the record sort of like the larger realities of sort of like the sadness of the culture and the country, but also like, and her own personal life, some good things are also happening. She's singing about weddings, but she's also singing about the state of the world and how bad things seem at any given moment. ♪ And look at my mind, doesn't try to kill you ♪ ♪ They just don't care if they kill you ♪ - I've been listening to Ariana Grande's record and she's having a bit of a rough summer herself and sort of like leaning into a certain kind of misery with the industry, with her fandom. The opening single was, "Hate That I Made You Love Me," which is again, having "Hate in the Title" is a pretty good indication that we're not in Lala Land right now. ♪ And I can see right through ♪ ♪ Ooh-hoo, like shadows on the moon ♪ ♪ This all bad news ♪ But the rest of the record is sort of gets even bleaker. The joy of Ariana so often is in a karaoke moment when you can try to hit those exuberant notes along with her. Her voice has an exuberance to it and she's always had a little bit of sadness too. She's always walked that line. But here, there's really not much exuberance at all. We're just getting the sad Ariana. ♪ Trying to feel some real ♪ ♪ To cry again ♪ ♪ They say the artists need tears ♪ ♪ To cry again ♪ I was listening to the new Charlie X-X with producer Peter Belanon-Rosen recently and I did not think of that as a sad album, but I was listening with half an ear. I noticed that it is on the list of people's sad summer albums. Tell me what's going on there. I think that you're right in the sense that it's a little bit more complicated than sad, but very different than Brad and Mood. Spring Summer 26, which I love. And the lyrics are, I mean, these are some serious lyrics. ♪ In the world is gonna end up hopeful, anything ♪ ♪ Yeah, we're walking on a runway that goes straight ♪ ♪ To hell, nothing's gonna save us ♪ ♪ No music, fashion, or fit ♪ Feels like a very different direction for her considering the sort of exuberance of Brad summer, which was just a few short summers ago. ♪ Bob and I, Bob and I, Bob and I, Bob and I, Bob and I ♪ So what is actually going on here? Like, is this a coincidence or is this a sad time, a sad culture, a sad country? What's the deal? I don't think it's a coincidence. I mean, I think there's a couple of things going on. One, I think we've been sort of moving in this direction for a while. I mean, I think when we think back about 15 years ago, the kind of pop that was on the radio was Exuberant Pop, like Katy Perry. (upbeat music) And then Lana Del Rey had a song called "Summer Time Sadness" that came out around then. ♪ One more ♪ sort of like change the paradigm a little bit for what a pups are can be. And I think what we're seeing now as a generation of young female songwriters who have sort of grown up in Lana's wake, and they're dealing with weighty issues the way that Lana does. They're dealing with the darker side of life the way that Lana does. And I don't want to give Lana all the credit, but I do think she has caused a big sea change in how record labels can imagine young female singer songwriters to market themselves. The other thing I think is there's sort of two panics that I think might be related to this. One is the panic over AI and AI's role in music at a moment in which we're sort of concerned about sort of like perfection created by AI and by like a digital force that we would sort of cling to songs that are a bit messier and sad or very emotional. You know, they're not sort of perfectly constructed engineered pop marvels. They're a bit more soft and broken and dare I say human. And the other is the panic over Gen Z sexlessness, which this has certainly become a cultural panic, right? And again, I don't know what's going on with Gen Z, but if you looked at the charts right now, this is not a sexy summer. Like you would find some evidence that people are not having a good time, let's say. And so I think like there's a lot of things coalescing that sort of make it the perfect moment for sad songs. And I think it'd be really hard to sort of operate in the year 2026 and create music that has a sort of pure joyfulness. You wrote for Vogue that the best summer song is a sad one. That is a hard case to make, can you make it? I think some of the most powerful summer songs ever are really, really sad. If you're going through a rough time, it feels so much more amplified in my opinion in summer. Like and when I was writing the piece, I was there were just so many songs that I remembered from my youth and from younger days that really evoked sort of like the the harder sides of summer. I love one that I don't think many people would construe a sort of like a modern summer song, but to me it is an incredible summer anthem, which is Joni Mitchell's Woodstock. That's a song about the Woodstock Festival, the famous one in the 1960s, but it's sung from the perspective of Joni who missed the festival. She was stuck in New York doing work. Her manager would not let her go. And that seems very apropos of our time when you're sort of sitting in your office, but you're looking at Instagram and seeing people on vacation in Italy and you're thinking, why am I not jumping off of the Amalfi coast into the Mediterranean right now? What is going on here? Why is my manager making me stay here and I'm not at the proverbial Woodstock? So that's one I really love. What else? Oh, we could talk about Taylor Swift a little bit. That might be a good one. Yes. The most important summer song that Taylor Swift has is one called August, which I think is a truly beautiful song. In it she captures sort of something that's one of my favorite parts of summer, which is August, which is the month we're in right now. I sort of love that kind of wistful feeling at the end where you're already feeling a sense of nostalgia for the summer you just had. I'm already going through the memories that I had from June and July and I'm already sad to see them go and I'm starting to think about a more serious season in September happening. I mean, it not only sort of is a bout that it sounds like it. I mean, this is a song that sounds like Salt Air and Russ two things that she sings about. That sort of oxidized quality of summer. I love that kind of Cape Coddy wistful end of summer feeling when you know you only have a few weeks left or a few days left and so you really appreciate it in a totally different way, but that in and of itself can be kind of sad. Meet me behind the mall is a line that just does me and I don't know what it is about August. That song also just hits so hard for me. God, yeah. God, I love it. So 2026, what's your what is your song of the summer this year? There's so much debate over what the what the real one is. Let me get your let me get your opinion on that Alex. If you're asking from a cultural zeitgeist point of view to me, there's no question that it's eloingly choosing Texas. I mean, this song has been a behemoth. In terms of my own personal life, I keep coming back to Olivia Rodrigo. Every time I sort of step away from that record, I find myself pulled back and pulled back and it's funny because just yesterday I had her song begged, which is again a really hard broken ballad, just on loop, on repeat. And I'm in a good mood. But something about this summer has lent itself towards that kind of sort of, I don't know, sad whistfulness. Alex Frank is a contributor to Vogue. Ariana Sputu produced today's show, Abyssal Artsy was our sad girl editor, Gabriel Dunantop checked the facts and David Tadashore and Patrick Boyd engineered. The rest of the team includes Heidi Moog, D Miles, Brian Peter Balanon, Rose and Danielle Hewitt, Kelly Westinger, Dustin DeSoto and Sean Ramos firm, our supervising team is Omanel Saadi and Jolie Myers, Miranda Kennedy's the EP. We use music by break master cylinder. Today explained is distributed by WNYC. The show is part of the Vox media podcast network for more showspodcast.voxmedia.com. You can listen ad free by going to Vox.com/members. [Music] Apple News Plus has everything you're into, all in one place. Over 500 publications covering the topics that matter most to you. Thousands of recipes from celebrated food publications around the world. Local news from all 50 states. Sports coverage from across the globe. Audio stories you can take anywhere. And daily puzzles exclusive to Apple News Plus. All of it curated just for you. New subscribers try it free for one month at news.apple/learn. Terms apply. Picture it. Summer. You and your girls at your favorite patio bar. The sun's out. The breeze is perfect and you're looking stunning in that new sun dress. And what are we drinking? A Kampari Spritz. It's just Kampari, Perseco and soda water. Bold, iconic and perfectly bitter. Just like you. Check out official cocktail recipes at Kampari.com. Kampari Spritz. Stay bitter. Kampari Liquor 24% alcohol by volume 48 proof. 2026 Kampari America, New York, New York. Please enjoy responsibly.