Taylor Acorn - Poster Child
- Samuel Stevens
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
After nearly a decade of carving her own path as an independent artist, Nashville-based pop-punk singer-songwriter Taylor Acorn finally steps into her well-earned spotlight with Poster Child—her long-awaited sophomore album and first release under Fearless Records. The album not only marks a new chapter for Acorn’s career but also cements her place among modern pop-punk’s most compelling voices, joining the ranks of contemporaries like Maggie Lindemann, Charlotte Sands, and Stand Atlantic.
Acorn’s previous releases, Certified Depressant (2023), Survival in Motion (2024), hinted at her potential, but Poster Child is the full realization of her vision—a cathartic, nostalgic, and unfiltered collection that bridges her early 2000s influences with her distinctly modern storytelling. Teaming once again with longtime collaborator Dan Swank (Arrows In Action, Cassadee Pope), Acorn channels the spirit of Avril Lavigne’s Under My Skin and Paramore’s Riot! while still sounding undeniably current.
The record opens with the punchy track, “Blood On Your Hands,” a fiery anthem that sets the tone for what’s to come. From there, “Crashing Out” delivers a melodic gut-punch, finding Acorn caught between growth and burnout, a feeling all too familiar to anyone navigating adulthood.
The album's spotlight single, “Hangman,” stands out as one of Acorn’s finest moments to date. Beneath its soaring chorus lies a clever metaphor for emotional stagnation—feeling like the universe itself is toying with you, one wrong guess away from defeat. Acorn’s vocals balance grit and grace as she laments, “I'm screaming into the abyss / What did I do to deserve this?” It’s that mix of vulnerability and power that defines her songwriting.
Elsewhere, “Poster Child,” the album’s title track, doubles as both a mission statement and an act of reclamation. Acorn embraces her flaws, doubts, and triumphs with a wink to her past—she’s not just surviving the expectations placed on her; she’s redefining them. “People Pleaser” is fueled by gritty guitars and infectious hooks; it’s a candid declaration of self-liberation from the need to appease others—a theme that threads through much of the album. “Home Videos” slows things down, reflecting on childhood innocence and the bittersweet ache of nostalgia, while “Cheap Dopamine” calls out the fleeting highs of social validation in an age of endless comparison.
Nearing the midway point of the record, the fiery “Goodbye, Good Riddance” bursts in with a sneer and a smile—Acorn herself calls it one of her favourite songs she’s ever written, and it’s easy to hear why. It’s bold, empowering, and certainly built to be performed on the stage in front of crowds of fans. “Sucker Punch” and “Vertigo” continue that energy, leaning into crunchy guitars and anthemic choruses tailor-made for festival sing-alongs.
Some of the album’s most emotional moments come with “Theme Park” and the stripped-down “Masquerade.” The former reflects on the dizzying highs and lows of chasing dreams, while the latter offers a raw, intimate finale that spotlights Acorn’s powerhouse vocals and emotional nuance. It’s a quiet reminder that behind all the noise and distortion, her greatest weapon is her honesty.
Poster Child is more than just a debut—it’s a culmination of nearly a decade of hustle, heartache, and hope. Acorn has always written from a place of truth, and here she delivers her most confident, cohesive, and emotionally resonant work yet. Her music speaks to the inner teenager who never quite outgrew their eyeliner and the adult still learning to love themselves out loud.
With Poster Child, Taylor Acorn isn’t just revisiting pop-punk’s golden age—she’s redefining it for a new generation.
Check out more from Taylor Acorn: Website: https://www.tayloracorn.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tayloracorn
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tayloracornmusic/
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