Everyone on campus has been at least alive for the early 2000s. Though we don’t remember living through it, we remember movies, TV shows and remnants from that time. At least once, we watched the Oscar-winning animated film that is Dreamwork’s “Shrek.” The whole movie deserves a review of its own. However, I want to focus on the opening song, Smash Mouth’s 1999 hit “All Star.” The best way to break down this masterpiece is to start with the music and the lyrics by themselves as we already experience them together.
“All Star” was written with the intention to be for Smash Mouth’s fans. The band realized how many of their fans were kids being bullied for listening to their music and decided to write a song. Thus, “All Star” became the uplifting and self-confidence-boosting song we know today. The lyrics reflect with the chorus, reaffirming the listener with, “Hey now, you’re an all-star.” The opening line of the song is, “somebody once told me the world was going to roll me.” This line sticks to the audience as it shows the narrator saying that this nobody told him the world would crush him for appearing to be unintelligent, which we see in the next line. The next verse focuses on how life goes too fast for us to tell the world or to do everything before we die. The narrator thus encourages the listener to “take the backstreets,” meaning you shouldn’t have to follow society’s expectations to get the same end result.
The second verse of the song references growing up and life becoming harsher, stating “you’re bundled up now, but wait ‘til you get older.” The narrator warns the audience that “the ice we skate is getting pretty thin; the water’s getting warm so you might as swim.” Going with the flow and making the most of the struggles along the way resonates with the audience as we often find ourselves in difficult and stressful situations. We have to make the best of everything especially in the lows of life. The last verse says “we could all use little change” and jumps into the bridge. This illustrates that life is cyclical and changing life’s minute details can improve oneself. Stepping outside of the norm and the rhythm can enhance life.
The music by itself is amazing. At first, the song is just a drum set and then adding bass and a keyboard. Slowly over the course of the opening verse, more instruments come in until the chorus. This shows that we have similar stories of not fitting in and sharing those ideas makes us united. The mix of rock and rap makes the song stand out. Also, the simple beat repeating itself throughout the song gives the song a simplistic nature in itself. The short pattern helps the brain in memorizing the song.
Clearly, this song is a cultural treasure in our society. You can potentially play this song anywhere, as everyone knows the song. “All Star” keeps the party going either at a karaoke event or a midnight drive home. It’s simply a song to jam to no matter the time or place.
