pop music

In 1997, the catchy earworm "MMMbop" by the brother trio Hanson spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard charts. The band members were 16, 14 and 11 years old at the time, but even younger when they wrote it two years prior, and their hit song felt seemed to be a reflection of the optimism and innocence of their youth.

But the upbeat, do-woppy chorus—which is what most people remember about the song—belies how deep the rest of the song actually was. Many millennials are just now learning about the song's poignant-but-hard-to-make-out lyrics, and hoo boy do they hit hard during the full-on-adult years.

Millennial digital creator Erin Miller shared a video on Instagram that captures how it feels to find out that "MMMbop" is a song about the existential uncertainty of relationships and wondering who's still going to be there for us in our old age.

Yes, really. Watch:

Hanson's "MMMbop" is surprisingly deep.

If you go back and listen to the song, you'll forgive yourself for not recognizing any of these lyrics because it's genuinely hard to hear the words they're actually singing. But when you look up the lyrics, whoa.

People are shook and sharing their feelings in the comments.

"Holy shhhh... It's just Poetry Disguised as a throwaway pop song."

"You forgot my favorite part: 'Plant a seed, plant a flower, plant a rose. You can plant any one of those. Keep living to find out which one grows. It’s a secret, no one knows.' 🤯"

"Damn. Hanson coming in with the existential dread veiled under catchy major chords. It's giving the same vibes as Semi-Charmed Life by Third Eye Blind."

"*Runs to listen to the full original track and simultaneously read the lyrics*......... *Realizes this reel is accurate AF 😅🥲🥹🤣😂🤣😭* ...... Because 8 yr old me in 1997 thought this was the jolliest song EVER! 🤸🏽♀️😂"

"Remove the arrow from my heart immediately. I will not recover from this!"

"Yes! the words are shockingly deep for a song whose refrain is gibberish."

"I’ve been singing this song for 25+ years - and know zero of the words. 😮"

Zac, the band's drummer and youngest of the three Hansons, explained that "MMMbop" itself means a snippet of time and acknowledged that the song is actually really sad.

"The thing about 'MMMBop' is, obviously, it's a made up word," he told MTV. "It means a frame of time, but it also intentionally kind of is lighthearted, I think, in a way that disguises some of the meaning. It's kind of sad. It's kind of sad to hear a young person singing, like, most things in life are gonna pass. Most of the things you're going through won't matter. Most of your friends are gonna leave you or be gone 'cause in an mmmbop, it's all gonna be over."

Yeah…thanks, Zac.

The Hanson brothers were 14, 12 and 10 when they wrote "MMMbop."

The eldest Hanson, Isaac, shared with The Guardian in 2018 how the brothers came up with the song:

"I was 14, and my brothers Taylor and Zac were 12 and 10 respectively. We listened to a lot of doo-wop, which influenced the chorus of MMMBop. We were trying to write a part for another song and came up with this catchy hook, but it didn’t really fit. Much, much later, I said to the guys: “Remember that hook? It really sticks in your head. We need to find a way to use it.” Then, as we were getting ready for bed, we all sang it together in the bathroom.

A few days later, Taylor was sitting at the keyboard with an intense look on his face. 'I have an idea,' he said. 'We can make this song about life – and all the rejection we’re feeling.' And he played what became the first verse and a half of MMMBop: 'You have so many relationships in this life / Only one or two will last / You go through all the pain and strife / Then you turn your back and they’re gone so fast.'

The chorus might be effusive – 'Mmmbop, ba duba dop / Ba du bop, ba duba dop' – but the song is about how in an instant you will be old and grey, so you have to make decisions you feel good about before it is too late."

Pretty darn astute for kids who couldn't even drive yet. Sheesh.

The original tempo of "MMMbop" was more reflective of its meaning.

So why does the song have such an upbeat feel when it's about something so serious and profound? Isaac Hanson explained that the original version of the song was "slower and more brooding" but that version wasn't landing with record companies until one saw potential in it as a hit pop song and sped it up. Thus the version we all bop along to was born, and the rest is history.

Hanson is still making music and still performing their breakout hit more than 25 years later. If you're still processing the lyrics of "MMMbop" and need a little help, here's the trio sharing more about how they got their start and how the song became what it is:

- YouTubewww.youtube.com