In March of 2020, New York City first experienced the COVID-19 pandemic. It was a wild time, with officials and citizens alike having no idea what this virus was like, why it broke out, and, perhaps most importantly, what to do with themselves. Amid the subsequent lockdown in quarantine, a 17-year-old musical artist known as Emmrose had ridden a brief wave off the release of her debut EP, Hopeless Romantics. This was, of course, shut down along with the rest of the world, as it were. This is where Emmrose got the inspiration to pen the lyrics to “17 Inside”, a deeply introspective song that sees her reflect upon the year that she’d be stuck in her room, cut off from seeing her friends in person and seeing many windows of opportunity closed for the time being.
17 Inside
“I feel that I never really finished high school because I was in zoom-school all year. I felt that I grew as a person but didn’t get to show that to anyone. It was very frustrating for no one to see that. I was still upset with how everything happened with a particular friendship, and that I never had a chance to really talk one on one about how I felt. I don’t like holding grudges and I don’t want to have people thinking poorly about me. I was hoping to apologize, but New York shut down.” – Emm
Not only were social ties all-but-severed for Emmrose, but additionally, her professional career was stymied. Tour dates were canceled as a result of the lockdown, but Emmrose saw the quarantine as an opportunity to live-stream her songs from the cautious comfort of her abode. What was once a lament for real-world connection with old friends had become a new chance to connect to young people around the world.
“17 Inside” is remarkably relatable because it relays an event that happened to, and is still happening to each and every one of us. While a necessary quarantine lockdown no longer holds us back, and while the COVID-19 pandemic is purportedly lessened in the U.S. (with President Joe Biden allegedly lifting emergency mandates in May), the virus is still prevalent and even if it weren’t, its toll is still felt by those who have lost loved ones.
In a post-lockdown world where the likes of musicians like Bo Burnham, Phoebe Bridgers, and, of course, Emmrose (among many others) are still coming to terms with the toll of isolation, this style of lyric will be the norm, at least for a while. Things have changed, and the “new normal” very much involves the sustained discussion of young voices coming into their own despite the pain. We should all do our best to listen and reflect upon our own “17 Inside” as well. – Josh Nelson
