So I've been hearing this song from Foster The People called Pumped Up Kicks for a few weeks now.  I listen to the lyrics, and it led to a conversation with myself and Tommy The Hacker.  The point of the conversation, what is this song talking about?  Well I've listened to the song several times and done some internet research and I think I've got it figured out!

This song is about teen bullying.  It's a serious issue that many teens face every day of their life!  It's not cool, and it leads to serious problems.  I think most of us remember the Columbine shooting.  This is a serious issue that needs to be addressed, but first, my reasoning for thinking this song talks about teen bullying.

Let's start by looking at the lyrics (courtesy of metro lyrics):

Robert's got a quick hand.
He'll look around the room, he won't tell you his plan.
He's got a rolled cigarette, hanging out his mouth he's a cowboy kid.
Yeah he found a six shooter gun.
In his dads closet hidden in a box of fun things, and I don't even know what.
But he's coming for you, yeah he's coming for you.

[Chorus x2:]
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet.

Daddy works a long day.
He be coming home late, yeah he's coming home late.
And he's bringing me a surprise.
'Cause dinner's in the kitchen and it's packed in ice.
I've waited for a long time.
Yeah the slight of my hand is now a quick pull trigger,
I reason with my cigarette,
And say your hair's on fire, you must have lost your wits, yeah.

[Chorus x2:]
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet.

[Whistling]

[Chorus x3:]
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun.
All the other kids with the pumped up kicks you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet.

Okay, I can really derive this whole theory from the 1st verse of this song.  In my opinion, they are talking about a kid (Robert) looking around the room, kind of shady like.  With very shifty eyes.  He is scoping the scene of the people he wants to shoot.  Then it says he found a 6 shooter gun in his dad's closet.  The verse is describing a kid that is being bullied and he is planning a revenge with a gun.

The hook, which says "all the other kids with the pumped up kicks better run better run, out run my gun".  Well that explains itself.  These "trendy" kids, all wearing "pumped up kicks" (shoes), are in his sites of his gun.  He wants to shoot them.  They even say "better run, faster then my bullet".  So the way I read into it, these kids with the "pumped up kicks" are like a group, a click.  They all wear similar style shoes, and he is flat out saying, "keep picking on me, your soon going to have to out run my gun."

The second verse begins by talking about the kids dad.  He is waiting for his dad to come home for dinner and bring him a surprise, but he mentions the dinner is "packed on ice," meaning it's in the freezer.  As he says "he's been waiting for a long time", from this I gather dad up and left him and his mom.  So now not only are we dealing with a child that is being bullied at school, but a child with abandonment issues, a result of his father walking out on his family.  Then it continues to say "with the slight of my hand, now the quick pull  trigger".  That's going back to his plan to shoot people, to get revenge.

The song then just whistles the melody and repeats the hook or "chorus" of the song.  Again, reinforcing that his plan is to take the gun he found and shoot the people he is being bullied by.

Maybe I'm crazy, maybe I am reading to much into the lyrics of this song.  However, after reading all this, it really seems spot on, doesn't it?

There have been songs in the past that have dealt with the issue, like Pearl Jam's - Jeremy.  Let's face it, teen bullying is a serious issue that leads to drastic results!  You don't know what the person you are bullying is going through personally.  Like the kid from Pumped Up Kicks.  His dad has left his family, he is feeling abandoned and exiled.  He has enough problems at home yet he has to go to school where kids just add fuel to the fire by bullying him.  Let's take a stand against teen bullies!  We are many, they are few!  Not saying for your to get violent.  But it's time for this to stop!

My question for you is, how do we stop teen bullying?  How do we handle this situation?  If we pull our heads together, we can beat this!  The floor is open to everyone, what do we do about teen bullying?

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