Fix what’s wrong, but don’t rewrite what the artist wrote. Stick to the official released version — album booklet, label site, verified lyric video, etc. If you’re guessing, pause and double-check.
Respect the structure
Songs have rhythm. Pages do too. Leave line breaks where they belong. Don’t smash things together or add extra empty space just for looks.
Punctuation counts (but vibe-editing doesn’t)
Correct typos? Yes. Re-punctuating a whole verse because it ‘looks better’? Probably not. Keep capitalization and punctuation close to the official source.
Don’t mix versions
If you’re editing the explicit version, keep it explicit. If it’s the clean version, keep it clean. No mashups.
Let the lyrics be lyrics
This isn’t the place for interpretations, memories, stories, or trivia — that’s what comments are for. Keep metadata, translations, and bracketed stage directions out unless they’re officially part of the song.
Edit lightly
If two lines are wrong… fix the two lines. No need to bulldoze the whole page. Think ‘surgical,’ not ‘remix.’
When in doubt, ask the crowd
Not sure what they’re singing in that fuzzy bridge? Drop a question in the comments and let the music nerds swarm. Someone always knows.
This reprise is about Mary Todd Lincoln, the wife of Abraham Lincoln. Who went insane because her two sons died (a pretty good reason to go insane, if you ask me). Lincoln and Mary Todd both called Illinois their home and Sufjan is giving a shoutout to them.
Her son, Robert, took her to court to commit her. She was known to buy hundreds of dollars worth of material which would have been used to make curtains with, but after abraham died she lived mainly in hotels until she moved in with her sister shortly before her death. After Abraham died, Tadd died, and then she lost it. She spent four (?) months in a sanitorium and afterwards disowned Robert.
Yeah she was only in the Mental Place (I don't know the correct term) for three months. Her son put her in there because he wanted to be incontrol of finances, apparently. She of course never forgave him. I mean, WOULD YOU!?!?!
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This reprise is about Mary Todd Lincoln, the wife of Abraham Lincoln. Who went insane because her two sons died (a pretty good reason to go insane, if you ask me). Lincoln and Mary Todd both called Illinois their home and Sufjan is giving a shoutout to them.
Her son, Robert, took her to court to commit her. She was known to buy hundreds of dollars worth of material which would have been used to make curtains with, but after abraham died she lived mainly in hotels until she moved in with her sister shortly before her death. After Abraham died, Tadd died, and then she lost it. She spent four (?) months in a sanitorium and afterwards disowned Robert.
Yeah she was only in the Mental Place (I don't know the correct term) for three months. Her son put her in there because he wanted to be incontrol of finances, apparently. She of course never forgave him. I mean, WOULD YOU!?!?!
Also it was said that Abraham was abused...physically...by Mary Todd because she was kind of crazy to begin with.
she used to sew money into her dress because she believed people were after abe's money after he died and she had no protection from the gov't.