Melanie Martinez: Detention Meaning

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Detention Lyrics

I'm not a bad guy
So don't treat me bad if I'm feeling sad, alright?
Please don't be mad if I don't smile back, alright?
If I fuck up my words, don't think I'm absurd, alright?
Alright?
I'm physically exhausted
Tired of my knuckles...

1. 1TOP RATED

   #1 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Jul 14th 2020 report

   To me this song sounds a lot like a couple trying to solve all the underlying problems in a relationship with sex. Oftentimes in toxic relationships, the only reason couples stay together is because of the sex. So they pretend everything is alright in the relationship so they can continue having sex. Here I believe Melanie is comparing having sex to mask the real problems in a relationship with after school detention: “Baby can you meet me tonight in detention.” Which can translate to, “meet me in the bedroom.” “I can feel your blood pressure rise.” This is something that occurs during sex, it is high energy and your blood pressure rises without a doubt. “Fuck this tension” Again, trying to solve the tention in a relationship with sex. “Let me crawl up into your mind” which obviously is a reference to Melanie seducing her partner. “Did I mention pretending everything is alright is detention.” Again referencing having sex with your partner to avoid addressing the real issues in a relationship. This isn’t the only thing that suggests to me that this song is about sex. If you watch the music video for Detention, you can see Melanie and two other dancers dancing in a very sexual manner, as “children” throw bugs at them. I believe this is a direct parallel to a strip club in real life. At a strip club, people come to watch dancers on the stage, and instead of throwing bugs at the dancers, they throw money. Let me know what you think about my Interpretation, there are many different ways to interpret a song but this is just how I view it

2. 2TOP RATED

   #2 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Feb 22nd 2020 report

   Crybaby is tired of being treated badly. Everyone goes insane if she makes one little mistake and gets mad at her for no reason. She tries to find things to pass the time, even though she is very sad. She says that they're too busy being selfish to see how she's feeling. No one cares about her, they only want her to make money, making her feel like 'chopped meat'. She begs to be treated properly, but they only ignore her pleading. She doesn't want to keep pretending she's alright, or for anyone else to say they aren't doing anything wrong. It's making her exhausted, sad, and frustrated.
3. anonymous

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   Dec 19th report

   I am confused at this point, but here is MY interpretation:
   I believe this song is about Crybaby being pressured by piers and teachers (I say piers ‘cause we all know that their not her “friends”). She is being used to make money against her will, causing her to be depressed. This is clearly stated in the lyric “Fu*k how I feel as long as I make money”. She is faking her happiness just to please everyone, stated in the lyric “I’m chewing gum to pass this time of sadness”. To top it all off, nobody cares how Crybaby feels. This is clearly stated in the lyrics “You’re too busy seeking selfish. Don’t care how I’m feeling” So I am assuming that detention = the tension (as stated in an other interpretation).
4. anonymous

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   Dec 6th report

   The other interpretations are way off. Especially the first one. This song is definitely about Crybaby being pressured. But there is more to that. Crybaby is being used (possibly by her “friends” or the school) to make money, which is clearly stated in the lyric “ Fuck how I feel as long as I make money”. They are using Crybaby to earn money for their personal benefits but her peers don’t really care about her mental and physical state. Crybaby is absolutely tired which is stated in the lyrics “ I'm physically exhausted
   Tired of my knuckles beating”. So, no, this song is not about a abusive relationship or sex. It’s about Crybaby’s peers pressuring her to make more money when she is exhausted for their personal gain.
   
5. anonymous

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   Aug 29th report

   Detention = The tension.
   It's called Detention cause of the school theme and I think that the song is about melanie being tired of fans and music producers etc putting pressure on her
6. anonymous

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   Jul 4th 2021 report

   This song is about Crybaby being treated badly, probably in a relationship. In the music video, you can see her being injected by a substance that makes her look happy. And what is detention? It's boring. So "Pretending everything is alright is detention" could mean like she is tired of pretending that everything is fine and lovely. It also implies that someone, probably her partner, is ignoring that she is unhappy "I'm chewing gum to pass this time of sadness, can't you see it," and "You're too busy seeking selfish wishes, don't care how I'm feeling."
   Also in the music video, she is seen dancing in a sexual manner in a glass cage (I love the outfit tho ngl) and people are throwing bugs at her, referencing a strip club and how people aren't happy with her, so they throw things at her. At the end of the music video, crybaby breaks out of the cage, referencing that she finally had enough of being trapped in the relationship.
7. anonymous

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   Dec 25th 2020 report

   This song is probably about how she pretends to be alright. In the music video you see Melanie performing and dancing while the viewers throw bugs and laugh. I think this is about people hating on her and her remaining quiet because the song says ¨I can feel your blood pressure rise¨ ¨If I don´t snap back alright¨. At the end of the music video you see how she stops performing and faces them, making them back away and scared. In other words, Melanie is probably getting hate so she pretends everything is alright and doesn´t say anything back because she doesn´t want to make more chaos.
8. anonymous

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   Dec 14th 2020 report

   I think this song means she is in a relationship with someone and only somewhat likes them. In the line "let me crawl up into your mind" it obviously means she is trying to seduce him but the in the line "pretending everything is alright is detention" kinda sounds like she doesn't have feelings for him and she needs to find a way to tell him. Also, when crybaby and her friends are dancing, the kids are throwing bugs at them wich reminds me of a strip club but instead of people throwing bugs, they throw money
9. anonymous

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   Jul 14th 2020 report

   To me this song sounds a lot like a couple trying to solve all the underlying problems in a relationship with sex.
10. anonymous

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    Jun 20th 2020 report

    I think the meaning about this song is how people judge her to much and everything she does people still find away to make her look bad and she's tired of it and how people could be selfies and not care about her feeling and she trying to say that her "crybabies" trate her like its school because people don't care how they trate her and they don't care because she's making money and for her its like school because you have to be "perfect" for them not to get mad at you.
11. anonymous

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    May 20th 2020 report

    I think of this song more of like a love sexual thing because how she says “I can feel your blood pressure rise”
12. anonymous

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    May 5th 2020 report

    I feel like this song is about people that kidnap girls to make them dance for them and their guests. I know this may not be why Melanie wrote this song but, all people hear different things from songs. This is personally what I think about this song! This is a great song though!
13. anonymous

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    Apr 23rd 2020 report

    people are being mean to her but the teachers don't care. she's to nice tell on them but pretending everything is alright is only hurting her.
    
14. anonymous

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    Mar 11th 2020 report

    It means that in the phrase “they let them do whatever they want to me” means that people are being mean to her and not helping her when she is in need.
    
15. anonymous

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    Feb 16th 2020 report

    It means she is tired of being treated badly.

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