The band is best known for the song "Popular", released as a single from their aformentioned debut. The song reached #11 on the US Billboard Alternative Songs chart and propelled the album itself to #63 on the Billboard 200. Each of the verses in "Popular" are extracted from the 1964 guide 'Penny's Guide to Teen-Age Charm and Popularity', a work by former teen television actress Gloria Winters, and the lyrics are sarcastically spoken, with a calm, deadpan voice used initially that gradually builds Kinison-style in teen angst and rage.
The groups follow-up effort, an album titled 'The Proximity Effect', failed to garner as much attention due to music industry shenanigans. The band explains on their official website:
Nada Surf recorded The Proximity Effect in 1998 with Fred Maher (Luna, Lou Reed, Matthew Sweet). It was a mighty fine record. Elektra [now part of Atlantic], claiming they "didn’t hear a single," asked the band to go back in the studio to hunt for one. As this was months after they’d handed the record in, the band refused and were dropped. It’s pretty safe to say, though, that Elektra didn’t appear to be "listening" very hard. The Proximity Effect was released as scheduled in Europe. Critics loved it and fans bought it. Elektra still didn’t care, but the band still did. So after wrestling the rights back, Nada Surf released The Proximity Effect stateside in 2000 on their own label, MarDev Records, and toured accordingly...
After a three-year wait, the group released Let Go through Barsuk Records to positive reviews. The song "Inside of Love" received some airplay and even reached #73 in the United Kingdom, a feat which neither "Popular" nor the other two previously released singles from Let Go achieved. On the strength of the single, the album reached #31 on Billboard's Top Independent Albums chart.
The band's fourth album, The Weight Is a Gift, was released in Germany on September 5, 2005, by City Slang Records, in Japan/Australia September 12th and in the US September 13th by Barsuk, and in the rest of Europe September 19th by V2/City Slang. It was produced by Chris Walla of the band Death Cab for Cutie, Louie Lino and Nada Surf. The album's lead single is "Always Love."
In 2008, Lucky was released. In 2010 the band returned to the scene triumphantly with the cover-album If I Had a Hi-Fi, revealing a diversity in source material whilst re-moulding it into trademark Nada Surf songs.
The band announced a new record will be released in January, 2012 called " The Stars Are Indifferent to Astronomy." The first single is called "When I was Young" and is available free to download from the band's website. On Oct 24th, 2011, the song was also featured as an NPR "Song of the Day"
Populär
Nada Surf Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Don't put off breaking up when you know you want to
Prolonging the situation only makes it worse
Tell him honestly, simply, kindly, but firmly
Don't make a big production
Don't make up an elaborate story
This will help you avoid a big tear-jerking scene
If you want to date other people say so
Even if you've gone together for only a short time,
And haven't been too serious
There's still a feeling of rejection when someone says
She preferres the company of others to your exclusive company
But if you're honest, and direct
And avoid making a flowery emotional speech when you break the news
The boy will respect you for your frankness
And honestly he'll apeciate the kind of straightfoward manner in which you told him your decision
Unless he's a real jerk or a crybaby you will remain friends
I'm head of the class
I'm popular
I'm a quarterback
I'm popular
My mom says I'm a catch
I'm popular
I'm never last picked
I got a cheerleading chick
Being attractive is the most important thing there is
If you want to catch the biggest fish in your pond
You have to be as attractive as possible
Make sure to keep your hair spotless and clean
Wash it at least every two weeks
Once every two weeks
And if you see Jonny football hero in the hall
Tell him he played a great game
Tell him you liked his article in the newspaper
I'm the party star
I'm popular
I got my own car
I'm popular
I'll never get caught
I'm popular
I make football bets
I'm a teacher's pet
I propose we support a one-month limit on going steady
I think it will keep people more able to deal with weird situations
And get to know more people
I think if you're ready to go out with Johnny
Now's the time to tell him about your one-month limit
He won't mind, he'll apreciate your fresh look on dating
And once you've dated someone else you can date him again
I'm sure he'll like did
Everyone will appreciate it
You're so novel, what a good idea
You can keep you time to yourself
You don't need date insurance
You can go out with whoever you want to
Every boy, every boy, in the whole world could be yours
If you'll just listen to my plan
The Teenage Guide To popularity
I'm head of the class
I'm popular
I'm a quarterback
I'm popular
My mom says I'm a catch
I'm popular
I'm never last picked
I got a cheerleading chick
I'm the party star
I'm popular
I've got my own car
I'm popular
I'll never get caught
I'm popular
I'm a teacher's pet
I make football bets
The Nada Surf song Popular is a satirical take on high school popularity and teenage relationships. The first part of the song provides advice to teenagers on how to break up with someone in a polite, honest but straight forward manner. The second half of the song is almost like a spoken word poem where the singer is bragging about his popularity, attractiveness, and all the girls he has dated. The song appears to be criticizing teenage culture for valuing superficial qualities such as popularity, attractiveness and dating, and not giving enough importance to sincerity and honesty in relationships.
The first part of the song provides a contrast to the second part by offering a more sincere and empathetic approach to breaking up. The advice given is practical and shows that honesty is the best policy even in a difficult situation such as breaking up with someone. By emphasizing the importance of avoiding a 'big production' or an 'elaborate story', the song suggests that teenagers often create unnecessary drama in their relationships, which only makes the situation worse. The song suggests that if teenagers are honest and direct in their communication, they will earn the respect of the other person, which could even help them remain friends.
The second part of the song takes a more ironic and sarcastic tone as it suggests that the most important thing is to be popular, attractive and have a lot of dates. The singer is obsessed with his own popularity and constantly brags about it. He suggests that if you want to be popular, you need to be attractive, keep your hair spotless, and tell football heroes they played a great game. He also suggests that you can date as many people as you like as long as you communicate your intentions clearly. The song almost mocks teenage culture for valuing superficial qualities over honesty, sincerity and empathy.
Overall, the song appears to be a critique of teenage culture for valuing superficial qualities such as popularity, attractiveness and dating over honesty, sincerity and empathy in relationships. It suggests that teenagers can avoid unnecessary drama and heartache by being honest and direct in their communication, and by valuing sincerity and empathy over popularity.
Line by Line Meaning
Three important rules for breaking up
Breaking up is a difficult situation to handle, but there are three important rules that can make it easier.
Don't put off breaking up when you know you want to
Delaying the breakup does not make things better and prolongs the pain for both people involved.
Prolonging the situation only makes it worse
Dragging out the breakup will only make things harder for both parties and add to the emotional burden.
Tell him honestly, simply, kindly, but firmly
The best way to break up with someone is to be honest, direct, and kind while also being firm about your decision.
Don't make a big production
It isn't necessary to make a spectacle out of the breakup, as it will only make things more difficult.
Don't make up an elaborate story
Lying or creating an elaborate story to explain the breakup will only cause more hurt and confusion for both parties.
This will help you avoid a big tear-jerking scene
If you follow these guidelines, you can avoid a dramatic and emotional scene during the breakup.
If you want to date other people say so
If the reason for the breakup is to date other people, be honest about it and communicate this clearly.
Be prepared for the boy to feel hurt and rejected
Breaking up with someone will inevitably hurt him, and he will feel rejected.
Even if you've gone together for only a short time,
Regardless of the length of the relationship, ending it will cause emotional turmoil for both parties.
And haven't been too serious
Even if the relationship wasn't too serious, it still hurts to be rejected.
There's still a feeling of rejection when someone says
Breaking up with someone always involves rejection, which is difficult for both parties to deal with.
She prefers the company of others to your exclusive company
Being told that someone wants to date other people can be interpreted as not being good enough or desirable enough for that person.
But if you're honest, and direct
Being truthful, clear and direct during the breakup can avoid unnecessary drama or confusion.
And avoid making a flowery emotional speech when you break the news
Overemphasizing on the breakup may seem disingenuous and is not a good way to soften this situation.
The boy will respect you for your frankness
Being honest and straightforward can be admired and appreciated, even during such a difficult situation.
And honestly he'll appreciate the kind of straightforward manner in which you told him your decision
During the breakup, being clear and concise about the situation can help the other person to understand and accept the situation without complicated explanations.
Unless he's a real jerk or a crybaby you will remain friends
Breaking up does not need to end a friendship, but this also depends on the person's emotional maturity and the circumstances surrounding the breakup.
Being attractive is the most important thing there is
This line is supposed to be sarcastic, pointing out the toxic nature of the obsession towards popularity and emphasizing surface-level aspects rather than character.
If you want to catch the biggest fish in your pond
If you want to appear more attractive, you must be the most attractive person, figuratively speaking.
Make sure to keep your hair spotless and clean
Maintaining physical appearance is vital to attract others’ attention, but it is taken as a metaphor to depict the shallowness of the obsessive culture.
Wash it at least every two weeks
This is a humorous exaggeration of how the culture of popularity has become superficial and excessive.
Once every two weeks
This is again an exaggeration to highlight the preposterous beauty standards.
And if you see Jonny football hero in the hall, tell him he played a great game
Praising someone's sports abilities can make them feel good and put you in their good graces.
I propose we support a one-month limit on going steady
This line humorously proposes regulating romantic relationships, indicating the absurdity of valuing popularity and superficiality over true feelings in relationships.
I think it will keep people more able to deal with weird situations
This line highlights the ridiculousness of the idea of putting a timer on a relationship and trying to regulate something as random and fluid as human connections.
And get to know more people
This is a genuine advice to explore new friendships and relationships without being bound in toxic, controlling relationships.
I think if you're ready to go out with Johnny, now's the time to tell him about your one-month limit
The song further pokes fun at the idea of a relationship with a timer, suggesting that it is absurd to even bring it up with Johnny.
He won't mind, he'll appreciate your fresh look on dating
This line humorously suggests that a one-month relationship limit is acceptable and will sound fresh and intelligent to Johnny.
And once you've dated someone else you can date him again
This line is poking fun at the idea that you can pause a romantic relationship and simply resume it after exploring other options, again highlighting the absurdity of committing to a relationship with an arbitrary end date.
I'm sure he'll like it, everyone will appreciate it
This line ridicules the notion of the one-month limit as being innovative and thoughtful while being absurd and pointless.
You're so novel, what a good idea
This line sarcastically praises the arbitrary limit to further emphasize its baselessness
You can keep you time to yourself
This is a sincere advice to have control over personal situations and spend time constructively without being tied to unhealthy relationships.
You don't need date insurance
This line further ridicules the concept of the one-month limit, pointing out that people do not need to artificially force a relationship with a time limit to feel secure and happy.
You can go out with whoever you want to
This line encourages the listener to be independent and not feel bound to specific people or relationships.
Every boy, every boy, in the whole world could be yours, if you'll just listen to my plan, the Teenage Guide to Popularity
The song depicts the shallow and absurd notion of the teenage popularity culture and exaggerates to point out the negative influences that it has on both individuals and society.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Daniel Lorca
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@paramo.alejandra
Three important rules for breaking up
Don't put off breaking up when you know you want to
Prolonging the situation only makes it worse
Tell him honestly, simply, kindly, but firmly
Don't make a big production
Don't make up an elaborate story
This will help you avoid a big tear-jerking scene
If you want to date other people say so
Be prepared for the boy to feel hurt and rejected
Even if you've gone together for only a short time,
And haven't been too serious
There's still a feeling of rejection when someone says
She preferres the company of others to your exclusive company
But if you're honest, and direct
And avoid making a flowery emotional speech when you break the news
The boy will respect you for your frankness
And honestly he'll apeciate the kind of straightfoward manner in which you told him your decision
Unless he's a real jerk or a crybaby you will remain friends
I'm head of the class
I'm popular
I'm a quarterback
I'm popular
My mom says I'm a catch
I'm popular
I'm never last picked
I got a cheerleading chick
Being attractive is the most important thing there is
If you want to catch the biggest fish in your pond
You have to be as attractive as possible
Make sure to keep your hair spotless and clean
Wash it at least every two weeks
Once every two weeks
And if you see Jonny football hero in the hall
Tell him he played a great game
Tell him you liked his article in the newspaper
I'm the party star
I'm popular
I got my own car
I'm popular
I'll never get caught
I'm popular
I make football bets
I'm a teacher's pet
I propose we support a one-month limit on going steady
I think it will keep people more able to deal with weird situations
And get to know more people
I think if you're ready to go out with Johnny
Now's the time to tell him about your one-month limit
He won't mind, he'll apreciate your fresh look on dating
And once you've dated someone else you can date him again
I'm sure he'll like did
Everyone will appreciate it
You're so novel, what a good idea
You can keep you time to yourself
You don't need date insurance
You can go out with whoever you want to
Every boy, every boy, in the whole world could be yours
If you'll just listen to my plan
The Teenage Guide To popularity
I'm head of the class
I'm popular
I'm a quarterback
I'm popular
My mom says I'm a catch
I'm popular
I'm never last picked
I got a cheerleading chick
I'm the party star
I'm popular
I've got my own car
I'm popular
I'll never get caught
I'm popular
I'm a teacher's pet
I make football bets
@nadasurf
Thanks everyone for watching / listening for 25 years. Hope you like the remastered HD video for “Popular”
@goanna83
Just so you know i searched this up instead of having the YT algorithms reccommend it to me 😅
@danielblaskowitz3412
Yesss Remastered! Thank you for doing so! Remaster all rest videos pleas! :)
@lisalovecat9969
is this song in a commercial right now or something, it just infiltrated my brain today :)
@samsungtv6287
great song. this is the song that really got me questioning that 6 million number and if it even happened at all
@michi4753
great song - great video
@j.r.hughes5136
People who went to High School in the late 90's understand every aspect of this song. Graduated in 00, and even 24 years later, this still resonates.
@ge2623
Anyone who went to high school ever understands this song.
@tiago2189
Went to high school in the early 2020's and i understand every aspect of this song
@terexdavis796
I'm so glad I grew up in the 90's. This classic song brings me pure nostalgia. 😎