Leanna Firestone - “You Just Didn’t Like Me That Much”
One of the coolest things about running a blog are all the submissions we receive that reside far outside of the boxes in which our lifelong listening habits have trapped us. It’s very easy to put up the walls that minimize your tastes and inhibit the ability to broaden your scope, which is exactly why we chose this track from Leanna Firestone, entitled “You Just Don’t Like Me That Much.”
Firestone’s bio reads as though an origin story for the hero that the world never knew it needed. She is part of the TikTok generation and is now able to live her lifelong dreams of making music 24/7 because one of her songs, “Strawberry Mentos,” has reached 8 million streams and another track, “Least Favorite Only Child,” is currently closing in with over 7 million- not too shabby, if you ask us. And we’re not bragging; we’re simply stating some facts that will prepare you for the delightful example of modern pop music that is about to fill your ears.
Firestone claims that her genre resides amongst the singer-songwriter/ commercial end of the musical spectrum. We wholeheartedly agree with this, but the major appeal here, with “You Just Don’t Like Me That Much,” is the lyrical content. For anyone suffering from relationship PTSD, this track comes off as very stream-of-conscious, but says a lot of things that victims of unrequited love wish they could muster up the courage to say themselves, as revealed in the opening lines: “You weren’t the right person at the wrong time, you just didn’t like me that much… You weren’t some evil mastermind… You didn’t try to hurt me on purpose…”
Generation X may hear hints of Jewel or Ani DiFranco because of how deliberately and matter-of-factly the lyrics pour out of Firestone, but that is not meant to draw a sonic comparison. Quite truthfully, we simply have no comparison to be drawn because we have never sat down and listened to music like this. But when you hear it, you will not be able to deny the craft. And as punk rock as we often wish we were, the entire track reads as though a poem worthy of being read in a film like 10 Things I Hate About You. Hollywood, pay attention!
This thing is catchy and tells a wonderfully depressing tale; the fact that we’re going on and on about a song that rests far beyond the walls of our comfort zones should be enough motivation for you to take it for a spin:
-TM