”Upside Down” specifically mentions Peter the Great, a 17th/18th-century Russian emperor who the protagonists are supposed to be learning about in high school history class (but would rather focus on their romance instead). While this might seem strange from an American perspective, it makes perfect sense when you consider the band is Swedish: Peter the Great fought and won a major war against Sweden [1], so Swedish schools are bound to spend a lot more time on him than USA schools would. It also doubles as a Take That!: Swedish kids would have another reason to dislike learning about Peter besides just the fact that it takes time away from a relationship. Who would have thought a teen pop song from that era would have such geopolitically-charged lyrics?
Also Harsher in Hindsight following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, during which Vladimir Putin specifically cited Peter’s war as a precedent for his own, and which led to Sweden itself abandoning neutrality and applying to join NATO for security reasons.
, so Swedish schools are bound to spend a lot more time on him than USA schools would. It also doubles as a Take That!: Swedish kids would have another reason to dislike learning about Peter besides just the fact that it takes time away from a relationship. Who would have thought a teen pop song from that era would have such geopolitically-charged lyrics?