So, have you ever heard a song so unbelievably much that it feels less like a piece of music and more like an act of emotional terrorism? A song so comically over-the-top that it stops being just a song and becomes a spectacle? Thank U (Bringing Us Down) by unapologetically queer powerhouse Matt Wright is that song. Thank U (Bringing Us Down) is what happens when you take P!nk’s or even Panic! at the Disco’s maximalist theatrics, inject them with even more queer yearning, and then light the whole thing on fire for dramatic effect. It is absurdly over-the-top, almost concerningly emotional, and it absolutely refuses to be anything less than a moment, all in the best ways possible.
From the very first note from Matt, this thing announces itself like a Broadway ballad in the same vein of something from the Dear Evan Hansen soundtrack or Heathers and Be More Chill’s theater-production adaptations. The entire track sounds like it was designed specifically to underscore the emotional climax of a YA film, and its lyrics certainly do go above and beyond with its sarcastic melodrama sold on full display.
The melodies on this track doesn’t just hint at yearning—it screams it. The whole thing plays out like a secret romance unfolding in real-time, full of stolen glances, hidden touches, and the kind of tension that could power a small city. The chorus alone arrives like a freight train of emotion, massive and cathartic. It’s the kind of chorus that practically begs you to sprint through the streets in the rain while screaming the lyrics at full volume. It’s that perfect, Broadway-tier blend of I Write Sins Not Tragedies and Dear Evan Hansen, but cranked up to frankly irresponsible levels of melodrama. It demands dramatic hand gestures and you gotta love it for that.
At this point, Thank U (Bringing Us Down) isn’t just performing musical drama; it’s physically reaching through your speakers, grabbing you by the collar, and demanding that you experience the full weight of its emotions like that clip of Donald Glover in an episode of Community, loudly shouting MY EMOTIONS. It dares you to remain stable while it catapults you into a final, gut-wrenching crescendo of vocal skill and raw theatrical excess.
Thank U (Bringing Us Down) is absurd, glorious, and it is queer-coded to hell and back. And frankly? You wouldn’t have it any other way.
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About the Author
A tenured media critic known working as a ghost writer, freelance critic for publications in the US and former lead writer of Atop The Treehouse. Reviews music, film and TV shows for media aggregators.
