EVERYONE’S A STAR: 5 SECONDS OF SUMMER LETS AUDIENCES IN ON THEIR EXPERIENCES AS A BAND
Starstruck is the only way to describe how you will feel after listening to 5 Seconds of Summer’s new album, EVERYONE’S A STAR! The album will take you on a journey through the whirlwind of over ten years of lived experience in the music industry.
Graphic by Abi Wagaman
Image via 5 Seconds of Summer
5 Seconds of Summer started nearly 14 years ago, when members Luke Hemmings, Michael Clifford, Calum Hood, and Ashton Irwin came together to create music that would be universally loved. Throughout the decade of music, each member has released their own solo projects, but they always make their way back to each other. Having the time to be independently creative has given 5 Seconds of Summer the opportunity to be even better together.
EVERYONE’S A STAR! blends each of the members' talents smoothly. Whereas earlier albums focus mainly on Hemming’s vocals as the main vocalist, this one has songs that give spotlights to all of their voices. With the addition of striking instrumentals, each guitar strum and drum beat shines.
“Boyband,” a track released just under a month before the album release, deserved high praise. A comedic, drum-heavy track, “Boyband” speaks on the pressures the band has faced as a “boyband,” a term they’ve famously hated and made jokes about hating through their whole career, including the need to stay fit and stay on fan’s radars:
“Raised on pop punk and bubblegum / Stay young, love me till I get it wrong / Make me the flavour of the week / Now I only feel alive when you're looking at me”
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“Give you, give you, give you, give you everything you want / See me on the telly every time you turn it on / Love me when I'm skinny and we never, ever age / Same four chords, but it never feels the same, oh”
These two lines sum up their feelings on what they feel is wanted and needed from them while they grow as a group. Along with the line “Make that monkey dance.”
The title track, “Everyone’s a Star!” expertly sets up what the album will feel like. In an interview with Billboard, bassist Calum Hood said, “We kinda stumbled on a song called “Everyone’s a Star!” and it kinda encapsulated everything that we felt about the community that we’ve kind of created within our fanbase, and also like the different versions of ourselves that we’ve lived throughout the whole 25 years of being a band.” The chorus of this song showcases Hood’s thought process the best:
“Everyone's a star (Star) / Baby, it's a dream (Hey) / Show me who you are / I wanna feel you breathe (Hey; Wanna feel you breathe) / Take me in your arms (Arms) / You're something superior / Everyone's a star, a star, a star, a star”
Many of the songs include a version of talk-singing which helps bring EVERYONE’S A STAR! to a more personal level. It feels like 5 Seconds of Summer is speaking right to the audience and including them in their meanings of the lyrics of the songs. “I’m Scared I’ll Never Sleep Again,” “Telephone Busy,” and “NOT OK” are great examples of this, with interjections of the talking-singing.
5 Seconds of Summer is at the top of their game, EVERYONE’S A STAR! is an accumulation of the best parts of them. Having been a fan since 2012, I can easily see how each era has led them to the creation of this album. The maturity and knowledge of CALM and 5SOS5 comes together with the fun-loving and deep 5 Seconds of Summer and Sounds Good Feels Good and the nightlife of Youngblood.
Throughout 2026, 5 Seconds of Summer will be touring and performing EVERYONE’S A STAR!, so make sure to pick up tickets and check out the album and band below!
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