Randy Beth’s crisp vocals and riffy acoustic style combine perfectly in her debut song “make a home.” Detailing the emotional toll growing up in an unsafe home can take, “make a home” is a moving ode to traumatic childhoods.
Childhood is the most formative part of our lives, and we all have unfavorable memories from being young. From trauma to abuse to tense relationships, everyone’s story is different. But most everyone can relate to the line “all she wants is peace.” Beautifully simplistic, the only desire during a turbulent upbringing is a moment of respite. Beth asks “can we make a home?,” searching for that safety and hoping it’s not too late to find.
My favorite line in “make a home” is “a trophy baby who never wins.” So often we hear of couples that decided to have children in hopes of saving their marriage or because it’s a societal expectation. Because children are thought of as a natural step in life, and not a careful decision to be made, being a parent is an accomplishment and being childless is a failure. This mentality certainly needs to change, because it creates the idea of the “trophy baby.” Having a kid shows that you’re stable- you’re doing life “right.” This kind of selfish procreation will never benefit a child, which Beth clearly signals by making the next line “childhood destruction.”
A sorrowful ballad reflecting on the hardships of a broken childhood, “make a home” by Randy Beth is poignant, reflective, and sonically lovely.
Written by Emily Cushing
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