“Wild Things” is a pop song by Alessia Cara released in 2015. In this song, Cara begins the song by relating with those that feel like they don’t fit in with society’s definition of what “normal” should be. She notes that “we will leave the empty chairs to those who say we can’t sit there,” indicating that she has felt rejected by society, and is tired of trying to appease others. Instead of trying to change herself to fit in with the “cool kids,” Cara embraces her “wildness” by paving her own way and “carving her own place into time and space.” Cara finds that instead of trying to “walk on eggshells” to gain people’s approval, she gives herself permission to be herself and find her own definition of what is cool. In the chorus of this song, Alessia Cara tells others to “find [her] where the wild things are” because she is no longer going conform to what society tells her is right to do. This lyric is very interesting because she recognizes that her idea of what is “normal” is what society would deem “wild.”
I really enjoy this tune because it analyzes and criticizes society’s definition of the word “wild.” Cara encapsulates in this song that wild is a relative term that is defined by the majority of society, or those that society deems to be “cool.” However, Cara empowers others to embrace their uniqueness and allow others to see them as “wild.” She tells her listeners to not conform to what society tells us to be but that it is normal to be different.
- Kristine Chin