Benson Boone is a name that has recently flooded the media. He gained masses of recognition for his song “Beautiful Things” in 2024, as well as, for his overwhelming amount of backflips. Despite this new fame, he has been a public figure for a few years now. 

Boone’s career began when he posted TikToks of him singing, which eventually garnered enough attention that the producers of American Idol reached out for him to go on their show. He agreed, and in 2021 he ended up making it to the top 24 before voluntarily leaving the show to focus on music. He has stated that he left so that he wouldn’t become known as an “American Idol kid.” 

Not only did Boone sacrifice an American Idol victory for his career, he also sacrificed his college education. He attended Brigham Young University for one semester before dropping out to pursue his passion for music.

Despite his apparent passion, he is deemed by many to be awful at it. Multiple Ludlow students have claimed that his music is annoying, repetitive, and painfully bad, lyrically. These are all points brought up by many on social media. In 2024, a video of Boone performing an acapella version of “Beautiful Things” became popular. People critiqued his singing as screaming and bashed on him for sounding annoying.

A more recent song of his, “Mystical Magical,” has an ongoing train of hate following it. The lyrics, “moonbeam ice cream / taking off your blue jeans,” are the main point of hate with this song. The lines have no real meaning to them, Boone admits, but within the media there is an increasing expectation for sophistication, so these lyrics instantly painted Benson Boone as a target to get made fun of.

Contrary to haters’ expectations, Boone played off of the hate. He collaborated with Crumbl Cookies to release the much despised Moonbeam Ice Cream cookie—which we had the delight of trying this weekend. Boone has posted TikToks of himself mocking the song by using the cookie, and has also appeared to make fun of himself for the lyric publicly. Most notably he has done this on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon.

Boone has also played into the hate surrounding the amount of backflips he does. His signature move premiered in 2024, and he has not stopped flipping since. During his current tour, Boone is counted doing around seven flips per show. In the past, that many flips from him was not a common occurrence. It is as if Boone is painting himself as a flipping-machine just to get back at everyone making fun of or doubting him.

Benson Boone’s ability to simultaneously entertain and annoy his audience while keeping them captivated by his music, appearance, and constant backflips remains a mysterious talent. This begs the question, is there any basis to this hate?

Boone embodies the creativity and freedom that is envisioned when you think of a rising pop star. Boone has stated that many of his lyrics have no meaning and make little sense to many. This is due to the fact that he prefers to go with the way he feels when he writes rather than focusing on the “literal meaning.” 

Along with his rising popularity, Boone has attempted to make a shift in his music. His song, “Beautiful Things,” is a deeply emotional song and was a big hit, climbing the Billboard Top 100 just a few weeks after being released. In an interview, Boone answered, “It was the first time that I’d been actually genuinely terrified to lose something.” The song was inspired by a relationship that he finally felt content with and was able to take his connection and turn it into a well-liked song.

Now, onto our favorite Benson Boone song, “Young American Heart.” The song is about a near-fatal car accident that Boone was in as a teenager where his best friend almost died. The emotional appeal of Boone’s recent songs has shown him in a new light that has reached more audiences. 

A lot of the hate toward Benson Boone evolved from misconstrued feelings or opinions. Many people jumped on the bandwagon without even giving him a fighting chance. In the survey we sent out, many people replied that the only song they knew by Benson was “Moonbeam Ice Cream.” They were referencing Boone’s song “Mystical, Magical,” but this proves that their knowledge in subjects concerning Boone is limited. 

Many artists start their careers with small audiences. The criticism is almost a guarantee in this profession, but it is still discouraging. There is no doubt that Benson Boone possesses a great amount of talent, and when given the opportunity, he will be able to flourish into something truly boonetastic.