“Harbor” – Clairo

Recently, “Harbor” by Clairo has maintained a chokehold on me (do not ask why) and has become one of my staples for when I want an alluring and tragic song to play. The simple instrumentation of the single piano is held throughout most of the track, accompanied at points during the chorus by an acoustic guitar and drums. It isn’t a lot. However, American singer-songwriter Clairo, known by her friends and family as Claire Cottrill, and her co-producer Jack Antonoff can make the listener hooked by her smooth and pleasantly airy vocals.

These techniques are not new for Clairo as she has been releasing music since she was only 13 years old. Unfortunately, these early tracks are unable to be found online, though we can still find her first big hits on all streaming platforms. Her songs “Pretty Girl” and “Flaming Hot Cheetos” are to be considered her first songs that have viral traction because of their mellow production. However, her biggest hit of all time, titled “Sofia,” came from her debut album Immunity released in 2019. “Sofia” currently has more than half a billion streams on Spotify and was classified as a “sleeper hit” after it went viral on TikTok more than a year after its release. Clairo then released her anticipated sophomore album, Sling, two years after she released her debut. Sling was highly praised by critics and showcased a mature development in Clairo’s ability as an artist.

Clairo producing Sling in the studio. Source

“Harbor” opens up with Clairo reflecting on a past relationship and coming to the realization that she has “kept [her] faith for long enough” in something that is not mentally beneficial for her, as her partner is not showing her any signs of affection or care. She has waited a long time and stayed in this relationship, pondering when her significant other would ever start to show her that they loved her again, however, that moment never came and she has decided to give up. Clairo begins to overthink everything about her relationship and wonders if her significant other “kept [her] around” solely for the “constant affirmations” she would give them but would never receive back. Nevertheless, Clairo still wants this person in her life even after their anticipated falling out and disappointingly sings that she would let them win and “tie the ribbon” to her hair in case maybe there was a chance they would come back to their broken relationship. From this, Clairo is highlighting how even though she is not getting the attention she deserves from this person, she is still willing to let them come back into her life after she ends their relationship and that she’d be waiting at the “morning gates” for them.

Then, Clairo employs the analogy of how she is carrying all of this other person’s baggage and emotional turmoil as she “carried [them] upstairs” so they can peacefully sleep while Clairo is doing all of the work for them in the relationship. Clairo is left to deal with the thoughts that race her mind due to the state of the relationship and her overthinking. Additionally, Clairo reveals that in a way she represented her partner’s fears, yet they would keep her close and reveal that they “don’t love [her in] that way”. Because of this relationship, Clairo has begun to “harbor [herself] away from everyone else”, detailing that the relationship has taken a mental and emotional toll on her and that she needs time to herself to cope and reconcile from the damage her partner has done. She is ready to “swallow the pill” and finally separate herself from this relationship and release herself from the heartbreak she has endured. She was in a situation of unrequited love, and she was extremely devoted to her partner, however, they were not displaying these feelings back to Clairo.

These signs perfectly capture what Clairo was feeling throughout her relationship. Source

“Favorite Crime” – Olivia Rodrigo 

The night I write this blog post, American singer-songwriter, and actress Olivia Rodrigo is releasing her sophomore album, GUTS. Olivia Rodrigo is one of my favorite artists, as her music and lyricism are relatable, exude teen angst, and often take the listener through a journey. One of my favorite songs by her, “Favorite Crime” (stylized in all lowercase), happens to be my second most played song ever. For anyone who has ever been through heartbreak (which I presume is almost everyone reading this), the song’s clever yet relatable lyrics and acoustic instrumentation will be enough to tug on your heartstrings.

For background, Olivia Rodrigo began her venture into the spotlight as an actress on Disney Channel: first on Bizaardvark in 2016 and on High School Musical: The Musical: The Series in 2019. She garnered her first big hit with “All I Want”, a song on the soundtrack for High School Musical: The Musical: The Series, which peaked at #90 on the Billboard Hot 100. However, this was just the start of her career. Approximately a year after “All I Want” hit its peak virality, Olivia Rodrigo released her debut album, SOUR, which became the first debut album released this century to spend over a full year in the top 10 of the Billboard 200. Technically, all of the songs on Rodrigo’s debut album could be classified as hits as SOUR became the first album in Spotify history to have all of its songs surpass 200 million streams. However, the biggest hits of the “SOUR era” were definitely her debut single “drivers license” and third single “good 4 u”, both of which have surpassed 1 billion streams. Additionally – – from her debut album, she was awarded 3 Grammys for her hard work and talent. Despite being in her debut era, Rodrigo accomplished the unthinkable; things that many experienced artists who have been in the industry for years couldn’t do.

“Favorite Crime” was released alongside SOUR on May 21, 2021. She claims in the first line of the song that the person she loved so much that she allowed them to mistreat her was a willing accomplice in the “crime.” Then she adds that the individual fled the scene and was doe-eyed. It appears that he is attempting to present a façade of innocence about the breakup because “fleeing the scene” refers to leaving the scene of a crime, and “doe-eyed” generally denotes innocence. “One heart broke, four hands bloody” is a lyric that emphasizes her message conveyed throughout the song because it refers to how only her heart is broken yet how they are also responsible.

Olivia Rodrigo performing her hit song. Source

Then, in the second verse, she reinforces the message from the first verse: she was madly in love with her partner and stood up for them when they misbehaved, but when they “crossed the line,” they were nasty to her. Even though the relationship was toxic (“every time a siren sounds”), she is still devastated and would return to the person (“You know that I’d do it all again”). In the bridge, she elaborates more on this ambivalent sensation. She proceeds to exclaim in the bridge, “It’s bittersweet to think about the damage that we do” — reminiscing about the relationship is bittersweet. “Cause I was going down but I was doing it with you” supports her overarching theme; she was compromising her morals, but it was okay because she was doing it to stay with her partner.

Finally, in the chorus, Olivia emphasizes her metaphorical comparison of her relationship and everything she did for her partner to a crime and deems herself as a hopeless romantic. Even though she may regret the things she did for him and that she would consider them as “criminal” deeds, she hopes that her partner appreciates them and hopes that she is her partner’s “favorite”. She plays off the common “partners-in-crime” trope; usually, this has a positive connotation to describe a couple who are so attached/love each other so much that they would commit crimes together.

A hopeless romantic often reminisces on past failed relationships. Source