Shake It Off

The Dancing Class, 1870, Edgar Degas

The work of a parent of young children is never done - it is just set to a different theme song. Call it a bittersweet victory or just a pivotal moment in every parent's life, the realization that your kids have evolved beyond the annoying hypnotic charm of Cocomelon comes with some complicated emotions. Do you celebrate or mourn? Part of me celebrated - that she is growing up, moving on developmentally to pick up on new songs that are more age-appropriate. Another part of me felt a pinch of sadness, as this marked the beginning of a series of instances where she would outgrow something that had played an important role for half of her formative years.

“Cocomelon is for babies, and I am not a baby anymore, daddy. I am a big kid now,” she said. An existence free of Cocomelon was like a parental lottery win. Then came Benson Boone, Taylor Swift, Dua Lipa, Post Malone, and so on.

She agreed with me that she wouldn’t watch Post Malone's "Rockstar" video song "because it has too much blood in it,” and she’d only listen to the audio version, as well as Malone’s “Sunflower” song that she found very catchy and loved. Dua Lipa's workout song "Physical" - with its choreographed dance sequences, bright colors, and visual references to the ‘80s fitness culture - became an instant hit for her, and she could imitate, albeit with childlike efficiency, every choreographed move Dua and other performers could do in the song. But it was Taylor Swift's highly acclaimed song "Shake It Off" that caught her attention, and she glued to the song for weeks.

And no wonder why Swift strikes such a chord with youths because of her personal songs that encompass young people's emotional struggles in relation to themes such as self-discovery, personal growth, first love, heartbreak, and friendship. A catchy pop anthem, "Shake It Off" is a reflection on individual identity and personal resilience and cherishing them.

A staunch follower of existentialism and stoicism would see the song as an expression of an existentialist philosophical position that defies societal norms and external criticism, as well as Stoicism’s tenet that dictates distinguishing and accepting things we can and cannot control.

The song embodies Jean-Paul Sartre's idea of radical freedom that talks both about the privilege and the burden of self-determination. “Man is condemned to be free,” Sartre said. We are responsible for our actions and choices, even though we did not choose to be born and/or to exist. There is no meaning to human existence.

By consciously choosing how to understand and respond to criticism, the protagonist of the song demonstrates an authentic way of being. She asserts her right to define herself rather than assimilate the unfavorable opinions of others. She also illustrates the Stoic idea of paying more attention to how you react on the inside than how you react on the outside. Marcus Aurelius, Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher, said, “You have power over your mind - not external events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” By turning criticism into a metaphor for controlling one's emotions and maintaining psychological independence, "Shake It Off" celebrates criticism.

Hard Being Me, 2020, Marcelina Amelia

Foucault, the French postmodernist, challenged the idea that power is exerted by a central authority. Rather, he saw power as distributed, dispersed, and pervasive. "Power is everywhere...because it comes from everywhere.” Foucault emphasized that through the new "humane" practices of "surveillance" and "discipline" used in new institutions, [French] society had reconfigured punishment. And by practices of discipline, he meant normative pressures related to gender, sexuality, and mental health (and health in general). “Shake It Off” questions these Foucauldian ideas of normative pressure and societal surveillance. The song celebrates a girl creating her own identity and narrative rather than allowing herself to be disciplined by others.

All musical compositions resonate with the shared, timeless experiences of humanity. From the elemental rhythms of ancient drums to the digital sounds of modern pop, music has forever chronicled the story of hearts that pound, feet that glide, and spirits that soar.

The basic elements of music are almost always consistent: rhythms echoing our heartbeats, harmonies capturing the depth of our feelings, and melodies aligned with the natural flow of language. They are all different, yet they are all the same because they all spring from the same well of emotion, human experience, and the need for connection through sound.