The soundtrack for The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes film has been released, and the well-accomplished Olivia Rodrigo graced the world with a single for the film’s track, titled Can’t Catch Me Now. Not only is the lyricism and tempo beautiful, it was a smart marketing choice to have Rodrigo on the soundtrack.
In The Hunger Games franchise, which first debuted in theaters in 2012, a young girl named Katniss volunteers to take her sister’s place in the 74th Hunger Games, leading to her rebellion against the totalitarian dictatorship of Panem. These films were a hit with teenagers, especially teen girls. Rodrigo herself is a big fan of the Hunger Games series and now she has the opportunity to step out of her usual pop routine and work on a project she has prior knowledge of. Having one of the biggest artists today on the soundtrack will surely attract a new wave of fans to the books and films.
The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a prequel that goes back in time to the 10th Hunger Games, introducing the legendary Lucy Gray Baird and how she changed the games for the generations to come. Rodrigo has stated that she felt inspired which has allowed her to capture Baird’s fiery essence.
This folk song is from the perspective of Lucy Gray Baird to a young Coriolanus Snow. These two seemed to have a complicated relationship with Snow being her mentor for the games. The title of the song itself is a message for Snow, she’ll always remain on his mind even after she’s gone and this ties back to the original Hunger Games books when an Older Snow recognizes the unshakeable spirit of Lucy within the young protagonist, Katniss Everdeen.
At one point in time Lucy may have had feelings for Snow but she saw him for what he truly was. In the first verse Rodrigo sings “There’s snow fallin’ over the city”, the “snow” being the Snow family and their family motto “Snow lands on top” meaning they will do anything to get on top within the government even if it’s at the cost of others’ lives, including Lucy’s.
In that same verse Rodrigo sings “and all of the messes you made” directly calling him out for the destruction he has caused within the districts. During the chorus, Rodrigo sings “You’ll see my face in every place/ But you can’t catch me now” as a reminder to Snow that even if it takes years, her vengeance will come for him and everything he’s built.
The tone of this song is very taunting. In the beginning of the relationship they were simply two people who were attracted to each other because of circumstance. Though once Snow got to know Lucy, he wanted to get her under control badly because she represented chaos and he wanted order and control. The last line of the song is “Yeah, you thought that this was the end,” which adds to the lore of the trilogy everybody knows and loves. In their world, Lucy’s revolt won’t end with her. Just like he failed to catch Lucy he failed to catch Katniss.
Catch The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes in theaters Now.
