© 2026

For assistance accessing the Online Public File for KAXE or KBXE, please contact: Steve Neu, IT Engineer, at 800-662-5799.
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Entries We Love: AYVIO, 'Grow Up'

Hometown: Lawton, Okla.

Pairs Well With: Cooking a late breakfast in your pjs on a Saturday afternoon

From a silly thematic intro to the song's cheeky and relatable lyrics, AYVIO's "Grow Up" is a charming, fully entertaining production. The theatrics here are enough to hook – but the song really reels it in. A jovial melody underlines a vulnerable song about grappling with the disheartening realities of chasing a "childlike" dream that's never quite in reach. AYVIO's bars are both cheerfully optimistic and apprehensive (which might be why it resonates so much with a 20-something lost kid like myself).

In the middle of the song there's an a capella, lunch-room-style music break that will have you bobbing your head and jigging as he reflects on the letdowns of pursuing his music career. "Left me feeling deflated / Quitting, I contemplated / Am I overrated? / Is my music outdated," he raps atop a classroom table. No, AYVIO – your music is far from overrated or outdated. If I could say one thing to AYVIO, I'd yell from my own table top, "Never grow up!"

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Tags
Taylor Jennings-Brown
Taylor Jennings-Brown is a 2021-2022 Kroc Fellow. She is a thoughtful writer from Durham, North Carolina and is a spring 2021 graduate from the University of South Carolina, where she received her bachelor's degree in mass communications and anthropology.
Creative Commons License
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our site. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.