“Royals” (Lorde cover) by Youth in Revolt, Thursday, November 10, 2022

When a teenager grows up in New Zealand experiencing American culture through Hip Hop music videos, that teenager might have a distorted view of how Americans live. Lorde's breakthrough single "Royals" got some backlash for "overgeneralizing American culture" and misunderstanding Hip Hop. Others have said that Lorde’s take on pop with the emerging sad girl pop sub-genre helped to usher in a slowness

revolution that we can still hear today in the likes of Billie Eilish.

WE'RE DRIVING CADILLACS IN OUR DREAMS. While Lorde's original version of "Royals" beats most covers, the version I'm choosing for my playlist comes from the Punk Goes Pop series, performed by the band Youth in Revolt. The New Jersey based pop punk band adds an extra layer of grit to Lorde's song with heavy guitars and bass. Although the screaming at the end is gratuitous, I think that Youth in Revolt's version suffices to cover both the earworm and the need to transition from Rise Against's "Long Forgotten Sons." For me, in 2013, I wasn't listening to much pop music other than discovering K-pop. I first encountered "Royals" when Paper Route covered the song. I didn't actually know who they were covering, but eventually I checked out Lorde. I thought she sounded like another version of Lana Del Rey, but I didn't get into her music. I hadn't listened to her Pure Heroine until recently and only listened to Melodrama because my sister had a copy of the record in her car when I went home to the states. Today, Lorde is an artist I like to listen to occasionally. Solar Power was an underrated record from last year. I mostly skip Melodrama because I find the lack of instrumentals makes her voice a little jarring.

LET ME LIVE THAT FANTASY. "Royals" feels like it's the song for the rest of us. I can think of several people who are constantly talking about salaries and material wealth. They're always talking about cars, clothes, and about the things they will buy and the things that are out of their price range. I've pretty much killed my most elaborate dreams from when I was a kid: to be a movie star/director/ rock star, have a two-story house with a swimming pool and a wife and two kids. Instead, I've redefined my dreams, to make just enough to support myself so that I can live in a comfortable house and enjoy a little time off. My jewels are my Apple products, and they're also kind of my kids. My iPhone Pro 14 says he wants a little brother as his big brother the iPad Pro 3rd generation has gone blind in the rear camera and is running out of space. I think that if I can make a small impact in the lives of my students and the people around me, I will be rich in this world. Sure, I want to be able to afford the airfare to be with my family for the big moments. I want to be able to afford groceries and a night out on the weekend. I want a small piece of happiness, and I think I have it. So I'm driving Cadillacs in my dreams and parking it in front of my commodious bungalow.

Read Lorde’s original lyrics on Genius.

Read the Youth in Revolt cover lyrics on Genius.

Lorde’s original: