Mitski has addressed why she says “6-7” in the lyrics to her song ‘Rules’, and told fans that she is “35-years-old and didn’t do that on purpose”.
The track featured on her new album ‘Nothing’s About To Happen To Me’ which dropped in February. In the song, the singer starts counting up from from one to 11, and some fans immediately became fixated on the part where she gets to six and seven – particularly due to the phrase becoming a viral term over the past couple of years.
Mitski has noticed fans’ excitement at that particular part of the track, and has recalled how some people at her gigs have been singing that section louder than ever, even shouting it out during other parts of the show.
Speaking on stage in Bristol over the weekend, she explained that the nod to the slang-term was completely accidental, and she is somewhat baffled by the traction the song has got as a result of the coincidental reference.
“On the journey to 10, I say the numbers six and seven. I want you to know that I am 35 years old and I didn’t do that on purpose,” she told the audience. “But it is fun that you all have a good time with it.”
@burp.111 after she sang rules #mitski #mitskiconcert #mitskibristol
♬ original sound – n
She continued: “A few nights ago, there was a kid towards the front who just loved 6-7 so much. He kept screaming it even in the songs that had nothing to do with it!
“I have one song called ‘Dead Women’. I played it. I say, ‘Stab me 27 times.’ And he was like, ‘6-7!’… And it was like, ‘Pull yourself together! Those are different numbers entirely’,” she quipped.
As for those who were unfamiliar with the term, she shared her insight, saying: “OK, kids you’re going to cringe at this. I’m talking to adults my age and older. If you don’t know what 6-7 means, come in, huddle up, I’ll tell you… There is no inherent meaning.”
Check out the clip of her speaking to the crowd at Electric Bristol above, and tune into the song in question below.
Earlier this year, the musician announced a 2026 tour of “global performances”, but went on to shed light on her choice not to embark on a “proper tour” to promote the new record.
NME gave ‘Nothing’s About To Happen To Me’ a glowing five star review and described it as rich in “wit and warmth” and “her best album yet”.
“She gives few interviews these days, and her personal social media presence, once wonderfully sardonic, has been consigned to history, too,” it read.
“This means we must investigate Mitski’s work forensically to get a sense of where her head is at these days, and ‘Nothing’s About To Happen To Me’ suggests somebody who is less a victim of her own success and more somebody coming to terms with it in her own inimitable style: with an open heart and a delightfully morbid sense of humour.”
