Released: 2023
“Silly” by Troye Sivan is a compelling study of self-awareness, yearning for connection, and the emotional journey of letting go or moving on from someone who once held a significant place in one’s life. It paints an image of heartbreak and the subsequent healing process where the individual confronts their feelings and attempts to find solace in their own company.
The song opens with Sivan declaring, “I’m still in it like that, baby, I’m a love junkie like that,” establishing himself as someone who invests heavily in love and relationships. He admits that he’s “silly” enough to keep longing for this particular person’s attention, even as he recognizes that they aren’t precisely reciprocating his feelings, evidenced in the lines, “Cause you really know me, But, you don’t wanna know me.”
In the chorus, a paradox develops. The lines, “All the bodies on the floor collide, Everybody’s out here looking right” suggest a party or social gathering, and yet Sivan feels isolated. He expresses the desire to “get outside of this body,” which references his yearning to escape his feelings, to disconnect from his emotional state.
“I still love you more than I should say, I’m just tryna put that shit away, Don’t need anybody here to console me” reveals Sivan’s struggle to move on from these feelings that are still so raw. He’s not straying from a confrontation with his pain, and explicitly clarifies he doesn’t need to be counseled or comforted.
The line, “Alterate my mind to be like you” speaks to Sivan’s desire to change his perspective, perhaps to become less invested in love or to evolve the way the other person has. “I’m just recreating you” is a poignant depiction of his attempts to reconstruct the memory of this person, to change the narrative in a way that makes moving on easier.
The refrain, “I’m a love junkie like that,” keeps echoing throughout the song, pointing towards a distinguishing feature of Sivan’s personality and how he navigates through his relationships. It implies a certain addiction to the highs of love and firmly grounds the song in raw emotionality. The repeated asks, “can you hit me back?” showcases the persistent longing for a response, for some sort of acknowledgment from the other person.
In all, “Silly” is a resonant tribute to the difficult process of moving past heartbreak, and the singing, self-examination, and resilience this journey requires.
