By Sophia Sciulli

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:: Sophia points out musical ageism.  

:: February 12, 2026

:: For whatever reason, I always find a song that coincides with my current age. When I was fifteen, I incessantly listened to “Fifteen” by Taylor Swift. On my sixteenth birthday, my mom sang “Sixteen Going on Seventeen,” from the Sound of Music to me. When I was a swift seventeen, and during junior year of high school, I played “Seventeen” by Haley Blais on the way to the SAT. When I turned eighteen, I listened to “I’m Eighteen” by the king of “Shock Rock,” Alice Cooper. Now, at nineteen, I listen to “Hey Nineteen,” by none other than Steely Dan. 

The 1980 yacht rock song discusses the discourse between a thirty-year-old man and the nineteen-year-old woman he is infatuated with. Despite his attempts to “woo” her, the age gap impedes on his ability to connect with her generation. Although I am not ecstatic about the content of the song, I enjoy the slow yet groovy beat the song provides on a sunny day. “Hey Nineteen” is a toe-tapper and snap kind of song that always puts me in a cheery mood. 

My affinity towards “Hey Nineteen” aside, I have begun to wonder about the lack of music directed towards people in their twenties. There are countless songs that mention one’s teenage years—in an explicit or implicit manner—and most often refer to the latter years of seventeen to nineteen. However, as I try to peruse Spotify, there are not too many songs about being past the age of nineteen. 

Besides SZA’s “20 Something,” and I am sure a few others, not many songs address the trials and tribulations of entering a new decade. 

In Juxtaposition, there are a plethora of teenage-related songs, and many integrate the number within their titles. To name a few, “Seventeen” by Peach Pit, “8TEEN” by Khalid, “18” by One Direction, and “Not Nineteen Forever” by Courteeners. 

So, why is this the case? The romanticization of one’s teen years speaks to a sort of “you do not know how good you have it until it’s gone” trope, while also exemplifying a level of naivety that can no longer be restored? I guess this makes sense as many pivotal moments happen during these years that seem momentous—at the time—but soon prove to be insignificant. Maybe it’s that insignificant that older adult artists miss? The fact that teenagers perceive the world from a shallow view that even the smallest events are automatically consequential.

I doubt I will be able to completely psychoanalysis this phenomenon, as I still remain in the teenage category. All I know is that I will continue to listen to “Hey Nineteen,” for the next month. And who knows, maybe I will discover a new twenty-something song? Or simply sulk around and reminisce on the “glory days” in the future. Whatever happens, I have accepted that I may need to begin a new musical tradition for the years to come.

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