DonвЂ™t forget that for centuries our culture had rejected talented young women who didnвЂ™t fit into those preassigned boxes, scared of and threatened by their potential for shaking up the status quo. To be clear, their ideas werenвЂ™t any less valuable, but they were more easily dismissible in the eyes of largely older, male critics and the patriarchy at large.

But because their images and career paths fell into more conventional territory, they were inherently taken less seriously than an intriguing outsider like Lorde. Plenty of young female artists before Lorde had shared thoughtful lyrics and expressed wisdom beyond their years, including some of the musicians of her own era, like Selena Gomez or Ariana Grande. Of course, that concept was not actually new. By using вЂњweвЂќ in her lyrics rather than вЂњI,вЂќ Lorde made it clear that she was representing an entire generation of girls, all of whom had strong, smart voices aching to be heard. вЂњLorde is good at turning things that the larger world maligns - say, the thoughts and observations of a teen girl - into unquestionable strengths.вЂќДЄnd she didnвЂ™t just do it for herself. As Lindsay Zoladz wrote for The Ringer in 2017, upon the release of LordeвЂ™s sophomore album Melodrama. Even when she discussed subjects other young women had sung about a thousand times before (friendships, crushes, dreams of leaving home), it was done with a raw, unflinching self-awareness that made those mundane normalities seem brand-new and exciting. To listeners, this originality was a welcome break from the genreвЂ™s tiresome, repetitive norm, and it demanded our attention in a way music from LordeвЂ™s contemporaries did not. And in вЂњTeam,вЂќ the albumвЂ™s third single, Lorde revealed her exhaustion with вЂњgettinвЂ™ told to throw my hands up in the airвЂќ by generic pop songs. вЂњRoyals,вЂќ the quickly ubiquitous first single off Pure Heroine, expressed her displeasure with genre tropes, like hard partying and gaudy displays of wealth. With her precocious cynicism, undefinable style, and take-no-prisoners attitude, the musician didnвЂ™t fall into any of the categories routinely assigned to her pop peers - a fact she was keenly aware of and happy to discuss in her music. Either the public dismissed her for her blandness, or demonized her for her audacity.Д«ut then came Lorde. Whichever path she picked, there was no way to win. For a teen or 20-something female artist to succeed in that climate, it seemed that she had to be either a by-the-book Disney drone willing to be a cog in a well-oiled machine, or a controversial agitator whose scandalous outfits and quotes earned more attention than her artistry. Fourth-wave feminism, which primarily sprouted online and focused on intersectionality, had only just taken hold songs like the aforementioned вЂњBlurred LinesвЂќ were celebrating the grey areas of consent and many celebs, like Sinead OвЂ™Connor and Rashida Jones, were accused of slut-shaming. Lorde opened the door for other smart, bold teen girls to say their peace and earn respect.ДЄlthough Lorde is far from the first female musician to have made it big while still not old enough to vote (Brandy, Tiffany, Britney Spears, Leann Rimes, Monica, the list goes on), her arrival came at a particularly significant - and tough - time for young women in pop.

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