Alternative folk pop artist, Maggie Rogers, got her start through a viral video where her song “Alaska” brought Pharell Williams to tears. She released her debut indie folk album, “Heard it in a Past Life” in 2019 and her sophomore rock pop album “Surrender” in 2022. Now, preceding her first U.S. stadium tour, she has released her third studio album, “Don’t Forget Me.” Rogers released the title song as a single, as well as the song “So Sick of Dreaming.” These songs set the stage for the album’s folk rock feel, like a combination of the vibes of her first two albums. As a Maggie Rogers fan, it has been cool to watch her career progress. I discovered her after she performed as the musical guest on ‘Saturday Night Live’ in 2019. Her first album had just come out, and later that year I watched her perform at the Armory in Minneapolis. I also saw her last year at Coachella, which was amazing. This fall, her “Don’t Forget Me” tour will bring her to the Target Center which holds twenty thousand people, a huge step up from the eight thousand person capacity of the Armory.
It seems like, between her first and second albums, Rogers changed something in the way she produces music. In both her first album and her EP “Now That the Light Is Fading,” Rogers’ vocals sound more edited. It’s not that she was using autotune, it’s just that, compared to her vocals in her two following albums, her vocals sound more processed. There is also a possibility that her vocal range has changed and matured since she started recording studio music in 2017. When Pharell Williams first heard her song “Alaska,” she was a senior at NYU. Since then, her voice could’ve changed as she got older and more experienced in singing, and she could want to change her sound. Either way, “Surrender” and “Don’t Forget Me” feel a lot more raw and true to Rogers’ voice.
The production of the music itself has also changed across these last two albums. Rogers initially combined folk music with dance music after studying abroad in college and discovering her love for the latter of the two. However, in the last few years her music seems to be moving away from the artificial beats and overly mixed feel. Especially with “Don’t Forget Me,” the listener can tell that every aspect of every song is produced by an actual band. Her pre- and post-pandemic work almost sounds like two different artists. This shift to a more traditional sound, while different, is not bad. Both versions of her work are artistically unique, and although her older style pushed genre boundaries, this new version of her music feels like a more genuine representation of Maggie Rogers as an artist and person.
Maggie Rogers’ vocal capabilities have always been incredible, showcased from her first song “Alaska” to this new album. Every song on “Don’t Forget Me” reminds the listener why she went viral. Between the harmonies she creates with her backing vocals, the emotion that is felt in every lyric and her sheer range, Rogers lives up to the label of singer-songwriter. Her piano ballad “I Still Do” is the most clear exemplification of her beautiful and distinctive voice. When pursuing a song with only piano, the singer has to make their voice fill the space of other instruments; this is exactly what Rogers does. She is able to manipulate her voice in a way that draws the listener in. She does something similar on the song “On & On & On” with the various runs she executes.
The lyrical theme of “Don’t Forget Me” involves feelings of growth and self discovery. Songs like “It Was Coming All Along,” “If Now Was Then” and “Don’t Forget Me” explore reflecting on memories and moving on to better things. It feels like the writing of this album was pulled straight from Rogers’ personal journal — vulnerable and authentic. The balance of the past, present, and future is represented throughout the album, so titling the album “Don’t Forget Me” is fitting.
The song “The Kill” is another example of Rogers’ reflection. She starts the song describing happy memories of a past relationship, but how she wants to leave them behind. She sings, “One of these days, I’m gonna wake up fresh and wipe all the past from my eyes.” As the song progresses, she realizes there were issues on both sides of the relationship, singing, “I was an animal making my way up the hill, and you were going in for the kill.” Rogers goes back and forth between blaming her partner and herself throughout the song. To ‘go in for the kill’ means to prepare to defeat someone after they have been weakened, and since the blame is given to both parties in the relationship, this could signify that they both used each other when in vulnerable states. “The Kill” is one of the more upbeat songs on “Don’t Forget Me,” and its dynamic feel is why it’s one of my favorite tracks on the album. I watched a video of her performing the song live on the “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” and I saw a comment that I feel encapsulates Rogers’ talent, especially with this song: Maggie sings like a diva and moves like water.
With her new sound, a great new album and a stadium tour on the way, Maggie Rogers is on top of the world right now. Tickets are on sale now for her show at the Target Center in Minneapolis on October 25. If you liked Rogers’ last album “Surrender,” or if you like artists such as boygenius, Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves, you will enjoy “Don’t Forget Me.”
“Don’t Forget Me:” ★★★★★
