Seventeen
Ladytron Lyrics


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They only want you when you're seventeen,
When you're 21, you're no fun.
They take a Polaroid and let you go
Say they'll let you know, so come on.




Overall Meaning

The song "Seventeen" by Ladytron is a commentary on society's obsession with youth and beauty. The opening lines, "They only want you when you're seventeen, When you're 21, you're no fun," suggest that people are most desirable and attractive when they are young and inexperienced. This is a sad truth as many people grow old and lose their youthful features and this no longer makes them attractive or interesting to others.


The next line "They take a Polaroid and let you go" signifies the superficial nature of our society. People are easily disposed of once they become less attractive or less useful to others. The line "say they'll let you know, so come on" suggests that there is always hope that they will call you back, but the reality is that they will only call you when they need you again.


The song is a commentary on the shallow nature of our society and its tendency to dispose of people once they are no longer young and attractive. It highlights the need for us to value people for their inner qualities rather than their superficial appearance.


Line by Line Meaning

They only want you when you're seventeen,
You are in demand and popular by others when you are at this particular age.


When you're 21, you're no fun.
After reaching the age of 21, people stop finding you interesting and attractive.


They take a Polaroid and let you go
They capture a moment, but it doesn't last, and they leave you.


Say they'll let you know, so come on.
They promise to contact you, so you should follow along eagerly.




Lyrics Ā© Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: DANIEL HUNT

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@Monikanoid

'Seventeen' is about modeling agencies.

"They only want you when you're 17, when you're 21 you're no fun."
This is exactly how modeling agencies work. When you're 17 you're young enough to not have fully developed female curves yet, perfect for that skinny catwalk look, and old enough to legally work without all the parental hassle. When you're 21 you're considered an adult, have more female curves, plus harder to work with because of an adult mindset, as in knowing this is not a career you want to pursue, busy with university and (jealous) boyfriends.

"They take a polaroid and let you go, say they'll let you know, so come on."
17 year olds go knocking on doors at modeling agencies, full of hope, thinking they're gonna be the next big thing. In reality you're just girl #186 that day. So they'll just take a quick Polaroid photo of you, write down your info on the back and they literally say "We'll let you know.." Just like any job interview, so yeah, come on..

All the young girls dancing in the observation room are resembling the hundreds of applications the agencies get on a daily basis, the staff walks around, keep making the application pile (all the Polaroids from the past few days) smaller and smaller till there is just one left, the best girl of that pile, who they might hire.



@mmiller6342

I think this song is not just a commentary on the fashion industry, but on society as a whole.

Men are allowed to age and have wrinkles and grey hair and still be considered attractive(Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio, George Clooney, etc), but most women in the public eye are discarded when they arenā€™t very young anymore. The only older women celebrities are the ones that have no signs of aging (Jennifer Lopez).

Women are taught that they should be hairless, short and petite, have high voices, and to be innocent and submissive (all are characteristics of children). Women are mostly valued in society for our ability to fit the impossible beauty standard and to please men. I We are not valued as much on our maturity and intelligence. Once you are no longer oblivious to the world around you and you have lost your childlike features and you age(which is normal) you are no longer seen as of worth. Once you hit 30 you have reached your expiration date even though that is a very young age.

The type of girl that men want is a young girl that is essentially a child. When you are 17, you have not yet realized what the world is like and are ā€œmore funā€. You are easier to take advantage of. When I was in my senior year of high school there were many men in their 20s waiting around for 17 year old girls. On porn websites there is a high demand for ā€œbarely legal videosā€. When Danielle Brigolli turned 18 everyone was excited and there were comments saying they waiting for ā€œso longā€.

When women are in their early 20s they are told to get settled while they still can so they donā€™t become an ā€œold maidā€ while men are encouraged to settle down much later.

There is so much more that I can add, but I will stop now lol.



@Heaven-lh2sx

This is about

Men only want you at 17.

Your parents want to baby you at 17 but want you to leave at 21.

Film directors want you to act at 17 but at 21 they think youā€™re too old.

Youth centers only want 17 cause you arenā€™t full grown at 17 but 21 you are and youā€™re no longer fun.



All comments from YouTube:

@user-sy9il3tc5p

ā€œYou canā€™t make a good song with two linesā€

Ladytron: hold my birthday candles

@timetraveler9518

Daft punk made a song with 1line it's called "around the world"

@xymez3743

@@timetraveler9518 the gods of edm

@maimunamay6198

Fatboy's Slim "Right Here, Right Now" only contains the words of the title.

@VV-nz4dv

alice deejay

@Kets4ekis_biggest_fan

Nya itchy ni san

15 More Replies...

@bobatea3911

this isnt just a critique abt the fashion industry. its ALSO abt society's beauty standards and how men feel abt women aging

@aliaboulekema-amraoui5317

Thank you

@bow_wow_wow

That's ludicrous. What 21 year old woman had any trouble whatsoever attracting male attention?

@cherrygloombae

@@bow_wow_wow is this a joke or...?

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