Most known for dealing with serious topics in an upbeat way, Melanie Martinez is an American singer, songwriter, music video director, and photographer, who is able to help direct her own music videos and imagine her own costumes. She first participated in, The Voice in 2012 singing, Britney Spears’ “Toxic”, and made it to the top six before being eliminated. Although elimination was a discouraging experience to go through, she began to work independently on her music. She was able to produce her first single, “Dollhouse” through heavy support from her fan base, and not long after signed to Atlantic records. Martinez describes her sound as, “very dark and honest” with “hip hop/trap inspired beats using creepy nostalgic childlike sounds such as baby pianos, music boxes, and toys”. – Mania, Greg (19 April 2014), creem magazine. Her music mainly deals with the protagonist of her album, “Cry Baby,” as she discusses themes of family disputes, body image, romance, and coming-of-age: all things that she’s dealt with in the past.

this is how Martinez describes what it’s like to have no control over the tears that escape you. If you get emotional very easily then you know that it’s really hard to know when you’re going to cry and what over; you could be in the middle of class, or walking down the hall when all of a sudden your emotions get a hold of you. I know what it’s like too, but for me, it’s mostly when I’m lying in bed and trying to sleep. I close my eyes and all of a sudden, instead of shutting down, my brain begins to think about all of the bad things that I’ve experienced. I can relate to how emotional that Melanie was as a child and it’s really helpful to hear that somebody else has gone through your struggles.
“Pacify Her,” begins with a music box melody; and what better introduction to use when you’re talking about shutting
someone up. In this song, Martinez is in love with a guy, referred to as “Blue Boy,” but “Blue boy” is currently in a relationship with another girl, whom She refers to as, “Basic Bitch.”
This tune is all about Melanie trying to free the one she loves from his current relationship with someone that he doesn’t particularly care for. When listening to this song, and/or watching the music video, it can be seen, and heard, that “Blue Boy” loves Melanie as well. ‘So why is he with somebody else?’ we ask. Well, a lot of us are going through a similar experience: maybe you really like someone, but they’re with somebody else and you don’t want to break up a relationship, or maybe you just don’t know what to do about the whole situation in general. Look no further than this song for help through your messy situation. It sucks to to like somebody that you can’t have, boy or girl. You have to physically see them hold hands, walk with, and kiss somebody else while you’re stuck imaging yourself in their partners shoes. I’ve been there before as well. One too many times have I seen that guy walk around with
her while I thought, ‘I wonder what it feels like to be her,’ and when I couldn’t get those thoughts out of my head, I really just tried to remember that if it’s meant to be then it will happen, but if it isn’t, then something better
will soon come my way and you should too.
In her song, “Carousel,” Melanie makes it sound like we’re in a carnival by incorporating carnival music and using lyrics such
as, “it’s all fun and games,” and “we’re a freak-show.” In an interview, Martinez described the meaning of the song as, “My falling
in love and being stuck on the same ride and trying to grab them, but I never reach them.” Sometimes love can feel like a game: you’re just making moves and trying to play all of the right pieces but you never seem to win. The first thing that usually comes to mind when you hear about fighting for love is relationships, but when I hear it, I not only think of couples but I also think about family. In the past, I was in three different homes throughout the years and I really started to feel like a piece in some game. This song makes me think about how I was on this ride for years and now I’m finally off of the “Carousel.”