On Gen Z’s Sad Girl Renaissance, and What We Can Learn From Lilith Fair
An ode to the sad girls that got left behind.
By Charley Burns
Photo courtesy of Tim Mosenfelder for Rolling Stone.
Let’s talk about the “sad girls.” We are in a renaissance right now of trying to pick up and carry the torch that was the 90s/early 2000s alternative sad femme music and you wanna know what? That’s great. Personally, I rock with that vibe and I think many of these songs have an anger that is missing from a lot of modern “sad girl” music (which I feel makes people think it's femcel-y for some reason, but that's a conversation for another day).
Lilith Fair was an all-female music festival in the late 90s, and looking back, it gives us a great compilation of this era’s best women musicians. The alt and indie wave of music popular in the late 90s was SO male-dominated, and the festival was a much-needed outlet for female artists. Social media has really fueled this new love for the vibe in a way that revolves a lot more around aesthetics, which I find frustrating. I’m not judging the choices and tastes of other women today, but seeing the musicians that people listen to and the ones they don’t, I’ve realized the pick-and-choose nature of this whole resurgence. Like okay, as a generation we have established a love for artists like The Cardigans, Fiona Apple, and Mazzy Star, while also bringing more one-hit-wonder-y songs into the mix, like “Kiss Me” by Sixpence None the Richer or “Tom’s Diner” by Suzanne Vega. If I opened up my TikTok For You Page and scrolled for like two seconds, there's a 99% chance one of these artists or songs would come up.
I love all of these artists dearly, but if we are really doing a resurgence of this genre, we are missing so many amazing and pivotal musicians who fit the bill but are being left behind! Now, a few of these artists I can defend being lost to time (looking at you, Ani DiFranco), but I feel like our generation is missing out on a lot that this specific moment in music had to offer. There are dozens of artists that match this profile and are still present in the scene but are not getting the recognition that they deserve from the new generation. Take Tracy Chapman for example. Though a complete powerhouse of the Lilith Fair era, she was not originally part of this new conversation, until Luke Combs, a straight white man, covered one of her songs. Which just feels wrong on 100 different levels.
You love Phoebe Bridgers? Try O.G. guitar-playing sad girl Aimee Mann (Magnolia’s soundtrack is one of the greatest movie soundtracks of all time). When was the last time you saw a TikTok set to the music of Oberlin alum Liz Phair? Exile in Guyville changes lives, people! 10 Things I Hate About You fans, where is your devotion to Letters to Cleo? K’s Choice, Tori Amos, Emmylou Harris, and the list goes on. Let’s give these women the recognition they deserve because they wrote some true bangers that I think would pair so well with anyone’s good cry sesh or dramatic walk in the rain after a breakup.
Underrated Tracks of the Lilith Fair
Not an Addict by K’s Choice
She’s Got Her Ticket by Tracy Chapman
Mother by Tori Amos
Deathly by Aimee Mann
Goodbye to You by Michelle Branch
I Died by Bif Naked
Ordinary Life by Kristen Barry
Big Star by Letters to Cleo
Fuck and Run by Liz Phair
Secretly by Skunk Anansie
25 by Veruca Salt
Spin the Bottle by the Juliana Hatfield Three