Make it stop.
Eric Church’s 2012 anthem “Springsteen” holds a special place in my heart, as I’m sure it does for so many of you. He released it as the third single from his breakout third studio album Chief, which was a huge moment in his career, and really launched him into a new realm of success in terms of his career, putting him very much at the forefront of the mainstream country genre.
Written by Eric along with Jeff Hyde and Ryan Tyndell, it’s become one of his signature songs, a fan-favorite, and I don’t think anyone would argue if you called it the biggest song of his entire career. It peaked at #1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, and has since been certified 7X Platinum by the RIAA.
It’s of course a tribute to one of Church’s musical heroes Bruce Springsteen, but also a classic tale of a summer teenage romance, and provides a level of nostalgia that honestly can make it hard for me to listen to at times. It’s not even really a sad song, but there’s something about it that always transports me to a different place and time, in terms of the lyrics and the song itself, but also where I was in my own life the first time I heard it… a young teenager myself, at a similar point in life to what he talks about in the song.
And it’s safe to say the nostalgia and warm, yet sad, feelings that come through so effortlessly in the songs till strike a chord with fans (no pun intended, but it works), because the song is currently all over TikTok.
Yes, it’s become a trend, but it’s not lighthearted and cheesy like most of them… people are using the song as background music for photos they’ve taken from Google Earth, which captured different places (mostly houses for this trend) during any given year, showing that span of their life frozen in time.
A lot of the pictures feature loved ones who are now gone doing something they loved, who just so happened to be in the shots going about their lives when the photos for Google Earth were taken, so they’re all very candid and real.
I mean, I can hardly scroll through more than three videos without seeing something like this:
@sammdamntastic This trend makes me sad 🥲 but i love it ❤️🩹 miss the days of rodeo weekends and barrel practice. #waybackwhen #2007 #ericchurch #springsteen #for #you #summer ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@hmjns House and vehicles are gone as well. 🥺 #googlemaps #grandparents #springsteen #ericchurch ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@bri.lo His wave. Miss you so much. #googleearth #google #googlemaps #googlemaptrend #springsteen #nostalgia #fyp #ericchurch ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@kc_line 13 years later 😮💨 Lord knows we have been through A LOT 🫶🏼💕 #waybackwhen #ericchurch #springsteen #summernights #throwback #husbandwife #loveofmylife ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@k_i_m116 The house that built me 🏠 #googleearth #myhome #googlemap #googlemaptrend #ericchurch #springsteen #nostalgia #fyp ♬ Springsteen – Eric Church
@tyra__lynn Screaming, crying, throwing up. This trend is killing me😭 #googlemaps #2008 #springsteen #grandparents #googleearth #nostalgia #gooddays ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@samantha.m03 this trend is not for the weak. #childhoodmemories #google #googleearth #googlemaps #springsteen ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@hmjns House and vehicles are gone as well. 🥺 #googlemaps #grandparents #springsteen #ericchurch ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@dirny_.spam This trend will be the death of me. #googlemaps #2016 #springsteen #grandparents #googleearth #nostalgia #gooddays ♬ Springsteen – Eric Church
@jennicolep Well this trend destroyed me. #googleearth #googlemaps #springsteen ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@alexandriakelseys Lord we miss you K.C. #googlemaps #google #springsteen #grandpa ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@katermelon333 #greenscreen 🥹 #googleearth #childhood #foryoupage #springsteen ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@angelmariewagnerr He loved watching judge shows. I miss that man beyond words. Life just isnt the same without you pap❤️#googlemaps #2015 #Springsteen #Summerof15 #loveyouforlife ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@rickeysgirlfriend4ever I miss you more then anything #springsteen #fypシ #fypシ゚viral #cancersucks ♬ original sound – noaidenno
@wyattsgfduh This trend is so sad 💔 i miss you grandma #trendingvideo #grandma #springsteen #greenscreen ♬ original sound – noaidenno
And that’s just scratching the surface, because there are thousands of others just like it. I haven’t been able to bring myself to jump into this and look at my own house I grew up in, or my grandparents house or anything like that yet, and honestly, I don’t think I will because I don’t think I can.
This is just too much, and I need this trend to end, like, yesterday.
Turn it up, but try not to cry now…
“Springsteen”
