The 2000s were the premier decade for cheesy, cringey pop songs. Specifically, the early 2000s had some of the best. These four songs saturated the airwaves, the malls, and the charts. But underneath all that cheese, they had real potential.
“Wherever You Will Go” by The Calling
“Wherever You Will Go” was the lead single on The Calling’s debut album, Camino Palermo, released in 2001. This was their biggest hit single, and it played everywhere for a while in the early 2000s. “Wherever You Will Go” saturated the mall food court with cheesy light-rock sentiment. But underneath all that, it was a touching rumination on losing a partner after a long relationship.
The lyrics were inspired by a moment in songwriter Aaron Kamin’s real life, where his grandmother’s best friend died and left behind her husband of 50 years. Unfortunately, the heartfelt core of “Wherever You Will Go” was smothered by its excessive airplay.
“Get The Party Started” by Pink
Is it more accurate to call Pink the spawn of Gwen Stefani, or were they contemporaries? Either way, they were both influenced by women in hip-hop, whether they admit it or not. “Get the Party Started” was the lead single on Pink’s second album, Missundaztood, which she worked on with Linda Perry. The song and the video are peak 2001, down to the neon orange fishnet tights worn as a shirt and the dance-off in the club.
Before Pink really found her niche in mainstream pop, she was still marketed as a white hip-hop/R&B artist. “Get the Party Started” still has a lot of elements of that, which try too hard to be cool in that 2000s way. But working with Linda Perry got Pink’s foot in the door of more rock-heavy pop music, which she took all the way to the 2010s.
“Harder to Breathe” by Maroon 5
Maroon 5 debuted in 2002 with “Harder to Breathe”, which introduced the world to Adam Levine and four other guys. According to Levine, this song isn’t so much about an old relationship as it is about the pressure from their record label. But among the more saccharine singles like “This Love” and “She Will Be Loved”, “Harder to Breathe” was an angry rebuttal that was surprisingly radio-ready.
Despite the fact that it was briefly inescapable, “Harder to Breathe” isn’t that bad. With the distance of more than 20 years, it’s almost enjoyable. Their debut album Songs About Jane was the harbinger of Maroon 5’s future success, and while they may have fizzled out in later years, they were undoubtedly the alt-pop kings of the 2000s.
“Kryptonite” by 3 Doors Down
3 Doors Down is one of those early 2000s bands that you liked a lot in middle school when you had no control over the radio in the car and also didn’t really know any better. “Kryptonite” has an air of the late-90s about it, as it originally debuted on a local radio station in 1999. It officially released in early 2000, and took off from there.
This song was everywhere for so long, and it’s most likely still played on local rock stations today. But that’s part of its charm. “Kryptonite” wasn’t as puffed up with cheesy sentiment as Five for Fighting’s “Superman (It’s Not Easy)”, but it had a tortured bravado that made you want to roll your eyes a little bit. Like it or not, you can’t hide from total lyrical recall whenever it comes on.
Photo by KMazur/WireImage
The post 4 Times a Cringey 2000s Hit Was Actually a Perfect Pop Song appeared first on VICE.
