On the move
Songs about moving + what I'm listening to right now
I’m sending out an abridged New Crush dispatch this week because I’m moving apartments on Saturday. The only person who is putting pressure on me to write this thing is myself and yet here I am, disappointed that I’m missing my self-imposed deadlines. Anyway! I’m writing this on Wednesday night as I kill time before I head to Faye Webster’s Radio City show. More on that next week!
Do you know any songs about moving? Today I typed “moving” into Spotify, and once I scrolled past the creepy, algorithm-designed playlists called “Moving Mix” and “Happy Moving Mix,” I found a stranger’s playlist called “very specific songs about moving away and starting a new life.”
My move is not as dramatic as “starting a new life”—I’m moving 3.7 miles from my current place. Or maybe it is that dramatic. It’s my first solo apartment, away from the general area I’ve lived in since 2018.
This playlist is fun, though—I especially appreciate its inclusion of “Bigcitydreams” by Never Shout Never (IYKYK).
When I think moving into my new place, I think of the song “Never Grow Up” by Taylor Swift. She’s singing to a baby, telling her (we’re just going to say this is a girl baby) to never grow up so that she doesn’t have to experience pain, heartbreak, regret. It came out in 2010 when Taylor was basically a baby herself, not even 21.
It’s the last verse that keeps playing in my head:
So, here I am in my new apartment
In a big city, they just dropped me off
It's so much colder than I thought it would be
So I tuck myself in and turn my nightlight on
Wish I’d never grown up
I’ve been in this “big city” for 10+ years (not counting the first two years of my life as a city baby), an Uber driver will be “dropping me off,” it will probably be hot because the building blasts the heat, and I don’t have a nightlight because I’m a brave emo girl who prefers the darkness. But if I post this verse on my Instagram story on Saturday, please just let me be.
“Never Grow Up” is also hitting me differently as one of my best friends, FONC Sophie, is having a baby (boy) in a little over a week. I don’t think we’ll want him to grow up, but I’ll never tell him not to. He’s allowed to have a nightlight, though.
🚨 VIBE CHECK 🚨
What the people are actually listening to:
Kendrick is still No. 1 on the Hot 100, but this time he’s topping the chart with “Luther,” featuring SZA. I think this is still coming from post-Super Bowl/Grammys hype. It brought “Die With a Smile” down to No. 3 so I’m fine with it!
On the flip side, Drake’s new album with PARTYNEXTDOOR, “$ome $exy $ongs 4 U” (sigh), debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. The reason I made this newsletter was pretty much to NOT have to talk about the Kendrick/Drake feud, so please read one of these explainers if you want to know why this is funny. Drake’s highest charting Hot 100 song from this “mixtape” is “Gimme a Hug” at No. 6. In other words, Kendrick is still winning.
❤️ CURRENTLY CRUSHING ❤️
As a New Crush subscriber, you get EXCLUSIVE access to our Currently Crushing playlist, which I update monthly with my favorite new songs. Here are three highlights I didn’t get a chance to mention in the newsletter this month:
“Silver Spoon” by Erin LeCount
The drama and dynamics of this song seem to be made for TikTok, so maybe I shouldn’t like it. Maybe I’ve fallen into its trap. But it’s so devastating that I can’t stop listening to it. I wouldn’t wish Erin LeCount’s lyrics on my worst enemy: The narrator can’t relate to her partner because they grew up in a loving home and she did not. “I bet you grew up being asked how your day was.”
“Praying For Your Downfall” by Jensen McRae
Technically I mentioned this song last week, but I’ve had it on repeat. Jensen McRae is one of the rising lyrical daughters of Taylor Swift that I’d personally group with Maisie Peters, Lizzy McAlpine and Sabrina Carpenter. This song is about how she no longer spends every waking moment “praying” for the “downfall” of her ex. But the insults she throws in show that she still maintains a sense of humor about it all. “Keep draining Stellas and blaming your mom,” “Keep telling people you're six feet tall.”
“Changed Unchained” by Nadia Reid
I’d never heard of this New Zealand artist until I discovered “Changed Unchained” on one of NPR’s playlists, but her voice sounds so familiar—not like she sounds like someone else, but like her voice is comfortable and broken in. I could replay the first verse over and over again, just because I love the way she sings the line “It wasn’t anybody’s fault.” It’s the little things!
😘 Friday I’m in Love 😘
Tomorrow’s notable album releases: (I’m not explaining this week SORRY. But I do think these are all worth a listen.)
“Run to the Center” by Cornelia Murr
“Tears of Injustice” by Mdou Moctar
“Erotica Veronica” by Miya Folick
There are only two things you actually need to know about me. My name is Natalia and my favorite podcast is Las Culturistas. They end every episode with a song. I end every newsletter with a song.
I’m so excited that Faye Webster opens her set with this song.
The first line: “I want to sleep in your arms…………….but not kiss.”
Moving post and playlist very on brand though
emo already