If her catalogue hadn’t sufficiently forewarned future boyfriends, then “All Your Exes” gave them zero excuse to claim ignorance. Julia Michaels has been working through some “Issues”.
One of those big ones would be jealousy. For this latest single, Michaels became so obsessed with her man that she delved into the admittedly dangerous territory of his past relationships. Conveying that she didn’t, but also kind of did, want to know those specifics.
“…And when your friends tell stories about 2017, I know there’s parts that they leave out to be considerate of me, Wish I could be blissfully unaware of where you used to put your mouth, And who you write your f**king songs about…”
-julia michaels
Here, the pop singer faced that insecure curiosity about who her current beau used to date. The women with whom he used to say and do the intimate things they now share. Did he like being with them more? Would those old flames eternally burn somewhere inside him? Did he still think about them?
These questions produced no shortage of “Anxiety” and continually had her looking for signs.
“…Please don’t tell me if I accidentally stumble, Into something that reminds you of her, No I don’t need your previous logistics, Where you spent your last Christmas, Spare your past life specifics…”
-julia michaels
She dug into how her moments of strength dissipated with triggering conversations like above. Did he compare the two of them? Did she fall up short? Was she in some other way ill-preferred?
All of these spiraling queries made her second-guess whether or not she’d invested too much in this guy. Was it worth being engrossed in his very essence? Was the risk too great to melt into his warm arms and peacefully rest her head on his chest? Did it mean anything if he didn’t feel the same way?
To live vicariously through Michaels’ fantasy for unequivocally solving her dilemma, check out the music video.
Leave a comment