It’s the moment Judd Nelson punches the air in The Breakfast Club. Driving through the tunnel in The Perks of Being a Wallflower. The moment in a film where the teenagers have overcome their problems and it seems like the world is going to be alright. We all know the coming of age trope and by modern tradition, we mocked it and made it go viral.
Nottingham based five piece Blondes provided the inspiration for this Tik Tok trend. Their single ‘Coming of Age’ became the soundtrack for people recreating emotional movie endings. And it works perfectly.
Guitarist Alex Davison said: “‘Coming of Age’ started with the guitar riff and there was something so nostalgic sounding about it”. Nostalgia is the word of the day when it comes to Blondes. With a guitar riff reminiscent of The Cure and Will Potter’s soft vocals transporting you to some 90s Britpop listening, this song will transport you to those heartwarming films we all grew up with. The films that remind you of past summers with friends and having expectations for the future. The social media attention has skyrocketed the song to over 2 million streams on Spotify and landed the band a record deal with C3 Records, all while still in their infancy.
Like the feeling of hope when Simple Minds tell you not to forget about them, or when David Bowie tells us we can be heroes, Blondes remind you of a simpler time when you could relate to on screen teens whose biggest problem was talking to their crush. It’s a nostalgia we all need right now—for those formative moments that made us, and that so many teenagers are missing out on today. To remind us why we’re inside now, to be outside again one day. When we fell in love; got drunk for the first time; sang loudly on our first road trip. ‘Coming of Age’ is an uplifting throwback to complement the lengthening days and newly sunny skies.
Read more: What Impact will TikTok Have On The 2021 Music Charts?
Words by Nancy Colbert
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