Pick of the Week: Maggie Rogers “In The Living Room”

By Kelly Egan, Staff Writer

A graduate from Harvard, Maggie Rogers came back to a city she knows well. Rogers graced Boston and the TD Garden just last week on tour for her most recent album, Don’t Forget About Me, which released earlier this year. Rogers announced her newest single, "In the Living Room,"  right before she kicked off her tour, on October 8. 

Though a song with an emotional meeting, the song is fairly catchy and upbeat. The guitar and drum instrumentals provide an almost head banging melody that captures the anger and emotion behind Rogers’ intention with the song. As a Massachusetts native, it’s no secret as to why Roger’s new song stuck in everyone’s heads here at WERS. 

The Backstory

In a statement, Rogers described the single as similar to the album, as it’s about the “beauty and pain of memory.” In the music video of the new single, Rogers is shown frantically in her room playing with bed sheets and then cutting to her sharing a kiss with someone meant to represent a past lover. Rogers encapsulates the song as a depiction of the emotional journey one goes through when someone exits their life. 

The Lyrics

Perfect for “sad girl autumn,” Maggie Rogers's music encapsulates the grieving process of a breakup. She starts off the "In The Living Room" reminiscing on the beginning of the recently ended relationship and wondering if her ex-partner is still thinking about her. “Cause I remember late September, your silhouette on blue wallpaper/But do you ever stop to wonder, about me?” Rogers sings. 

The chorus picks up as Roger sings about how although she let everything go between her and her past lover over time, she'll remember the times they had, such as “dancing in the living room.” This lyric reminds me of Taylor Swift’s iconic song, "All Too Well," when Swift sings the lyrics “we’re dancing ‘round the kitchen in the refrigerator light.” The artists encapsulate what it means to let go of someone while the memories still linger.

“All of the things we pulled apart, I let it go, it doesn’t matter/ The season changed, it broke my heart, but I will always remember you/When we were dancing in the living room,” the next verse continues, as Rogers remembers her old self being “young and hungry.” She sings about the ex-partner helping her, even when she was in a bad place. She then repeats the chorus which leads into the bridge. 

The bridge is short, but sends a message. She wishes that her ex won’t be completely scared of the old thought of her, and hopes that they’ll tell their new partner they love them. This insinuates that her ex was not the most open about their feelings, maybe even hinting towards them never saying they loved her. 

“But when you think of me completely, hope it doesn’t freak you out/And when you love somebody new, I hope you say it out loud.” The chorus repeats as Maggie reiterates how after letting this person go, she’ll always remember them dancing in the living room. The song concludes, but not before Rogers sings a few last lyrics, which I believe are the most important lyrics in the song. Rogers sings “so in love and high on our own fumes/oh, that’s how I will remember you.” These lyrics capture the meaning of the "In The Living Room": how you remember someone after you’ve healed and let everything go.