A Gen Zer was freaked out by the ‘sinister vibes’ of Billy Joel’s ‘Uptown Girl’ in an Uber and went wildly viral – 23 high-class attempts to work out why
Look, music isn’t meant to appeal to everyone. Sometimes you just cannot vibe with a singer or a tune and that’s fine.
Still, what to make of this mega-viral post about a very strong reaction to Billy Joel’s classic bop ‘Uptown Girl’?
Over on Twitter @plumjae recently posted that they were in an Uber and heard a song “that had the most sinister vibes ever.”
I was in an Uber share today and a song came on that had the most sinister vibes ever and all three of us were sitting in dead silence I wish I could rmbr the song imma try to find it
— erm (@plumjae) January 4, 2025
They then revealed – plot twist! – that the song was the Billy Joel song that spent five weeks at the top of the UK charts back all the way back in 1983.
I found it I was scared as fuck the Uber was just gonna drive us off the road I do not like the energy this song brought into the car pic.twitter.com/GjkVPIKlA0 https://t.co/cK6c8qzIZj
— erm (@plumjae) January 4, 2025
The most has been reposted and commented on thousands of times as people try to understand why the user found it so sinister and even if there’s anything to their fears…
1.
twitter users when they hear a joyful and upbeat song from 1983:
— bruise camphell ( lol evil dead ) (@evuhldead) January 4, 2025
2.
sorry to inform you there is not ONE Billy Joel song with “sinister vibes” lol
— Mark (@106th) January 4, 2025
3.
I think I’ve figured this out. My new hypothesis is that ironic use of old-timey sounding music in horror movies has subconsciously trained young people to associate doo wop, Motown, and other (esp. non-rock) music from the 50s/60s with murder. https://t.co/rolX7UpDx4
— kyle (@Caol_MacCormaic) January 5, 2025
.
Obviously “Uptown Girl” is from the 80s but it’s a throwback to those older sounds, and a teenager who doesn’t know this music isn’t going to make a huge distinction between this song and, like, Lesley Gore
— kyle (@Caol_MacCormaic) January 5, 2025
4.
— GODFOE UNIVERSE (@GODFOE_UNIVERSE) January 6, 2025
5.
I wanted to weigh in on the Uptown Girl discourse by reminding people that this song has the power to make you believe Bill Hader is in love with Amy Schumer (impossible). https://t.co/4aHgJApTXu pic.twitter.com/4JL0VTqoZR
— Rolo Tony (@PoorOldRoloTony) January 5, 2025
6.
I can’t stop laughing, but you’re not wrong because you’re actually picking up on the fact that the song is written with musical conflict that suggests it is about a tragedy https://t.co/v636kCnB3j pic.twitter.com/ErAYmkFpdv
— Heidi N. Moore (@moorehn) January 4, 2025
7.
Maybe the energy was you, babe.
The omen was coming from inside the body.
— PIERRE KING (@heypierreking) January 4, 2025
8.
It could be worst pic.twitter.com/x1EGTkV58F
— IN_YO_FACE_86 (@IN_YO_FACE_86) January 5, 2025
9.
I realize you’re getting a whole lot of feedback on this, but can you articulate why the vibes are off? Because as a Gen-X-er, this is on the ‘warm and bubbly’ shelf for me with ‘Raspberry Beret’ and ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’, and I’m trying to figure out what you responded to.
— Charlotte Honigman VOTED for Kamala Harris (@honigmaydl) January 4, 2025
10.
To be fair, this song also has a kinda slippery, obsessive male desire vibe, with no indication that the object of attraction reciprocates or is even aware that the narrator exists.
— (blessed) (@aeyokay) January 5, 2025
11.
a bit like the use of ‘Don’t Stop Believin'” at the end of The Sopranos: slightly “too cheerful” music that we’ve come to associate with a sudden and unseemly stop
— Guy Parsons (@GuyP) January 5, 2025