Ah, middle school. Not going to lie, not my proudest years. It was awkward and everyone tried so hard to be edgy. We weren't as cool as we thought, but do you know what was cool? The music.
Now for me personally, I was an edgy emo kid, but that didn't stop me from jamming out to "Dynamite" by Taio Cruz or "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele. I have vivid memories of coming home from school and blasting "Sweater Weather" from my generation 3 iPod, and you know what?
The early 2010s knew what they were doing with music. So reminisce with me and listen to these songs that helped us survive the most awkward days of our lives.
"Airplanes" by B.o.B (feat. Hayley Williams)
I probably played this song a minimum of 5,000 times when I was younger and it still hasn't gotten old.
"Ho Hey" by The Lumineers
Oh, yes, I did have a miniature Indie phase, why do you ask?
"DJ Got Us Fallin' In Love" by Usher (feat. Pitbull)
This song is basically what 2010 felt like.
"On The Floor" by Jennifer Lopez (feat. Pitbull)
This is one of the only songs I would dance to on Just Dance.
"Dark Horse" by Katy Perry (feat. Juicy J)
I really tried to suppress how much I liked Katy Perry until I heard this song. It was all over for me then.
"Sweater Weather" by The Neighborhood
I absolutely thought I was cool for liking this song. Honestly, I have this song on like three playlists now.
"Some Nights" by fun.
This song is still *chef's kiss* perfection.
"'We R Who We R" by Kesha
The party queen didn't have to bless us with this flawless track, but she did.
"'Hold It Against Me" by Britney Spears
If the lyrics were more PG, this song could have been in a Disney Channel original movie, and you can hold that against me.
"Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People
As someone who grew up loving Gorillaz and other chilled out emo songs, this song just feels very comforting to me, in the weirdest way. (Not the lyrics, necessarily.)
"Still into You" by Paramore
I've been a fan of Paramore since I was pretty young and this song never fails to make me nostalgic.
"Ridin' Solo" by Jason Derlulo
Jason Derulo has no bad songs, period. This will always go hard.
"Dynamite" by Taio Cruz
I used to record this song in small segments on my Nintendo DSi so that I could listen to it on the bus. Yes that embarasses me.
"Rolling in the Deep" by Adele
Adele's songs were really ahead of the times, huh? This would still be one of her most loved songs, even if she released it today.
"Party Rock Anthem" by LMFAO
LMFAO was apparently not a fever dream. They didn't last forever, but this song sure has.
"I Gotta Feeling" by Black Eyed Peas
This was the song that so many girls would listen to before going to the high school football games with their friends, I guarantee.
"Stereo Hearts by Gym Class Heroes" (feat. Adam Levine)
I still know every word to this song.
"Super Bass" by Nicki Minaj
Thank you, TikTok, for reminding me that I know every single word to this song. #Barb4Life
"As Long As You Love Me" by Justin Bieber (feat. Big Sean)
I'm not at all afraid to say it: this is one of the best songs from my middle school years. It soars above so many other songs, no matter how edgy and emo my personal music taste was.
"Vanilla Twilight" by Owl City
All I'm gonna say is, my friends and I used to argue over who would listen to this song when crying to sleep more.
"Stay With Me" by Sam Smith
His entire discography is just amazing and never fails to hit hard.
"This Is Gospel" by Panic! At The Disco
I just had to squeeze in one of my favorite artists of all time. This song is a classic for us former emo kids.
