Honestly, “Prom” by SZA immediately drew my interest because I loved my senior prom, and it holds a very special place in my heart. Prom is one of the last events of high school, and it signifies a feeling of being grown up and is a way to say bye to that chapter of your life. Immediately this song was fun, and her voice is delightful to listen to.

“Prom” is about a girl who is worried about not growing up as fast as the other people in her life. At the same time, she’s telling a friend to not take it personally if they grow apart. She feels as though it’s a normal part of high school to say bye to old friends and make new friends as you learn about yourself. Also, she “feels like I’m wasting time” because she feels like the time is ticking on this part of her life, but she doesn’t realize she has such a bright future ahead of her.  

There is a constant, happy beat in the background, but the lyrics themself are very sad. For instance, the line “fearing not growing up” stuck out to me. I feel like I struggled with this issue my entire time in high school. I felt like I had to experience and do everything and grow up quickly because that was the social expectation, and I thought other people had already done it all. When, in reality, everyone else was just as scared and felt like they had to grow up to be socially accepted as well. I wish I had slowed down and tried not to force myself to do everything just for the sake of doing it, but at the same time, I wouldn’t be the same person I am today if I didn’t have those experiences. I’m glad I realize now that it’s ok to take life slow and that I can choose to enjoy the innocent parts of life without feeling like I’m falling behind my peers.

I give this song a 7.5/10. Firstly, I think I enjoy female artists more because their feminine voice and the way they portray their experiences are usually more relatable to my experiences and life compared to male artists. Also, I felt like it was relatable to most young people’s experiences. Everyone has this pressure to live the perfect life and have “movie” moments but that’s not reality and that’s not truly living. Life isn’t perfect, and it’s okay to not always be making “core” memories and having the best time of your life. Finally, I also related SZA talking about growing apart from your friends. I am a very nostalgic person, so I struggle with letting go of people even if we have grown apart or even if it’s what’s best for me. But I’m beginning to learn that it’s natural and not everyone is meant to be in your life forever. Overall, I enjoyed this song very much.

Work Cited

SZA – Prom. genius.com, https://genius.com/Sza-prom-lyrics. Accessed 6 Nov. 2022.