Friday, August 10, 2018

"Girls Like You" by Maroon 5 feat. Cardi B

You know that meme where you must be super lame if you like Nickelback? I feel like that meme should've been about Maroon 5. I judge you if you're a big fan of Maroon 5. Heck, I'm judging myself for liking a handful of their songs. For a long time, I wanted to stab my eyes out every time I heard "Moves Like Jagger." But I still sang along every time it came on the radio because - God Damn It! - it's fucking catchy as hell. Note - Catchy does not equal good. Commercial jingles are catchy but that doesn't mean you should be singing them at a karaoke bar. Well, you could but people would be really confused. Anyway, I'm still stuck in Colorado due to a late night flight cancellation so I'm writing this on my phone using an app and then publishing in the business center. Because I have no shame that would inhibit me from blogging on a strange computer. Besides, I'd just be sitting around talking/singing to myself and the hotel staff already thinks I'm weird.

I've heard "Girls Like You" constantly while I've been in Colorado Springs so it's permanently stuck in my head now. That's not a bad thing. The lyrics are from the point of view of this guy who keeps coming back to this girl he can't get out of his head. Maybe they're off-again-on-again, but you can tell they're friends when they aren't together. But I get the feeling that he doesn't think he's good enough for her. He's trying to be, though, and sometimes he succeeds. (When I come through, I need a girl like you.) It sounds like the girl in the song doesn't care that he fucked up, though, because she's still around, still forgiving him, still driving his drunk ass home in the morning. And that's the point - she wants effort, not perfection. If you want to be good enough, fucking try and don't make excuses. If you want to spend more time with her, fucking tell her (I need more hours with you). If you need to take a red eye to be with her, do it (I spent last night on the last flight to you). Do what you have to. You might fall short but at least she knows you cared enough to try. That you're willing to do the hard stuff to be together.

The "I'm not good enough" excuse infuriates me, though. If someone says you're good enough, believe them. Otherwise, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy, doesn't it? I disappointed you in the past, erego I'll always disappoint you. Or I don't think I should be attractive to you because other people have always said I'm unattractive, therefore, I'll do things that make me seem unattractive, even if it pushes you away. It sounds crazy but people do it all the time and they sabotage their lives because of it. They ruin relationships, careers, opportunities because they have a predetermined image of who they are - and it's usually a negative version of themselves that emphasizes the flaws and ignores all the good. But I can tell you, that's not what other people see. Most of the time, people are too wrapped up in themselves to even notice you. But if they do notice you - even if it's just for a second - you'll find that they only see the good in you. I usually do, or try to with everyone I meet. And that's definitely the case with a girl/boy who wants to stick around no matter how lame you are (or think you are) and no matter how many times you fuck up (or think you do). So get over your bad self.

Side tangent, since we went down this path - I've toyed with the idea of being a life coach in the past. I decided I'd probably end up screaming at each of my clients because you can't get better unless you want to be better. And a lot of people don't want to do the work. It's uncomfortable and it's scary. I know because I've done it myself. I'm still doing the work because I know my childhood left me feeling like I wasn't good enough to be someone's first priority, not even my own. It's a never-ending battle but it's worth it. Believe me - staying who you think you are is safer, but you'll never get to the place where you want to be. Anyway, on a related note, this is also why I didn't continue my education to become a psychologist. I care too much and watching people choose to stay stuck every day would be disheartening.

Moving on, I enjoy Cardi B's rap break during the bridge. It gives you a chance to get the girl's perspective, which is basically "I'm awesome - in fact, I'm the best thing in your life right now, better than all those girls you thought you loved - and if you don't want to lose me, do something about it." I may have embellished a bit but my interpretation is pretty close (well...except for the dirty part...I forgot about that):

Not too long ago, I was dancing for dollars (eeoow)
Know it's really real if I let you meet my mama (eeoow)
You don't want a girl like me, I'm too crazy
But every other girl you meet is fugazi (okurrrt)
I'm sure them other girls were nice enough
But you need someone to spice it up
So who you gonna call? Bardi, Cardi
Come and rev it up like a Harley, Harley
Why is the best fruit always forbidden?
I'm coming to you now doin' 20 over the limit
The red light, red light stop, stop (skrrt)
I don't play when it comes to my heart, let's get it though
I don't really want a white horse and a carriage
I'm thinkin' more of white Porsches and karats
I need you right here 'cause every time you call
I play with this kitty like you play wit' your guitar (ah)

The video is simple but kind of cool. I love it when bands do videos with cameos of a bunch of celebrities. "Rockstar" by Nickelback is a great example of this. It shows how small the Hollywood/music scene community is, that they can easily get 15-20 celebs to do a video. The video features Ellen, Sarah Silverman, and Wonder Woman herself (Gal Gadot), just to name a few. And then it ends with Adam Levine hugging his family. Aww!

"Girls Like You" Video

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