| "American Teenager" | ||||
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| Single by Ethel Cain | ||||
| from the album Preacher's Daughter | ||||
| Released | April 21, 2022 | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 4:18 | |||
| Label | Daughters of Cain | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) | Ethel Cain | |||
| Ethel Cain singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "American Teenager" on YouTube | ||||
"American Teenager" is a song by American singer-songwriter Ethel Cain, released on April 21, 2022, as the third and final single from her debut studio album, Preacher's Daughter (2022). She produced the song and wrote it with Steven Mark Colyer. A heartland rock and indie folk track with beaming guitars, it illuminates both nostalgia for teenage life in the South and disillusionment with the American Dream. A self-directed music video for the song was published on July 21, 2022, three months after its release.
Upon release, "American Teenager" received widespread praise from music critics, several of whom identified it as a standout on the album, and multiple publications included it in their list of the best songs of the year. The track also featured on Rolling Stone and Billboard's 2023 lists of the best LGBTQ songs of all time. Cain performed "American Teenager" at several festivals and included it in the set lists of the Freezer Bride Tour (2022) and the Blood Stained Blonde Tour (2023).