"Fast car" is kind of a continuation of Bruce Springsteen's "Born to Run." It has all the clawing your way to a better life, but in this case the protagonist never makes it with her love; in fact she is dragged back down by him.
There is still an amazing amount of hope and will in the lyrics; and the lyrics themselve rank and easy five. If only music was stronger it would be one of those great radio songs that you hear once a week 20 years after it was released. The imagery is almost tear-jerking ("City lights lay out before us", "Speeds so fast felt like I was drunk"), and the idea of starting from nothing and just driving and working and denigrating yourself for a chance at being just above poverty, then losing in the end is just painful and inspiring at the same time.
Yeah, eh yeah yeah
I can feel a phoenix inside of me,
As I march alone to a different beat,
Slowly slowing down my fear,
Yeah, yeah
I am ready for the road less traveled,
Suiting up for my crowning battle,
This test is my own cross to bare,
But I will get there
It's never easy to be chosen,
Never easy to be called,
Standing on the front line when the bombs start to fall,
I can see the Heavens,
But I still hear the flames calling out my name
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
I can feel this light that's inside of me,
Growing fast into a bolt of lightning,
I know one spark will shock the world,
Yeah, yeah
So I pray for favor like Esther,
I need Your strength to handle the pressure,
I know there will be sacrifice,
But that's the price
It's never easy to be chosen,
Never easy to be called,
Standing on the front line when the bombs start to fall,
I can see the Heavens,
But I still hear the flames calling out my name
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
Heavy is the head that wears the crown,
Don't let the greatness get you down
Heavy is the head that wears the crown,
Don't let the greatness get you down
Oh yeah
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
I can feel a phoenix inside of me,
As I march alone to a different beat,
Slowly slowing down my fear,
Yeah, yeah
I am ready for the road less traveled,
Suiting up for my crowning battle,
This test is my own cross to bare,
But I will get there
It's never easy to be chosen,
Never easy to be called,
Standing on the front line when the bombs start to fall,
I can see the Heavens,
But I still hear the flames calling out my name
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
I can feel this light that's inside of me,
Growing fast into a bolt of lightning,
I know one spark will shock the world,
Yeah, yeah
So I pray for favor like Esther,
I need Your strength to handle the pressure,
I know there will be sacrifice,
But that's the price
It's never easy to be chosen,
Never easy to be called,
Standing on the front line when the bombs start to fall,
I can see the Heavens,
But I still hear the flames calling out my name
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
Heavy is the head that wears the crown,
Don't let the greatness get you down
Heavy is the head that wears the crown,
Don't let the greatness get you down
Oh yeah
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
I can see the writing on the wall,
I can't ignore this war,
At the end of it all,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
At the end, at the end,
Who am I living for?
Lyrics submitted by thoseguiltyeyes
Who Am I Living For? Lyrics as written by Christopher Stewart Katy Perry
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Hipgnosis Songs Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
Add your thoughts
Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.
Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!
More Featured Meanings
Fast Car
Tracy Chapman
Tracy Chapman
When We Were Young
Blink-182
Blink-182
This is a sequel to 2001's "Reckless Abandon", and features the band looking back on their clumsy youth fondly.
Amazing
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran tells a story of unsuccessfully trying to feel “Amazing.” This track is about the being weighed down by emotional stress despite valiant attempts to find some positivity in the situation. This track was written by Ed Sheeran from the perspective of his friend. From the track, we see this person fall deeper into the negative thoughts and slide further down the path of mental torment with every lyric.
Page
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
There aren’t many things that’ll hurt more than giving love a chance against your better judgement only to have your heart crushed yet again. Ed Sheeran tells such a story on “Page.” On this track, he is devastated to have lost his lover and even more saddened by the feeling that he may never move on from this.
Plastic Bag
Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran
“Plastic Bag” is a song about searching for an escape from personal problems and hoping to find it in the lively atmosphere of a Saturday night party. Ed Sheeran tells the story of his friend and the myriad of troubles he is going through. Unable to find any solutions, this friend seeks a last resort in a party and the vanity that comes with it.
“I overthink and have trouble sleepin’ / All purpose gone and don’t have a reason / And there’s no doctor to stop this bleedin’ / So I left home and jumped in the deep end,” Ed Sheeran sings in verse one. He continues by adding that this person is feeling the weight of having disappointed his father and doesn’t have any friends to rely on in this difficult moment. In the second verse, Ed sings about the role of grief in his friend’s plight and his dwindling faith in prayer. “Saturday night is givin’ me a reason to rely on the strobe lights / The lifeline of a promise in a shot glass, and I’ll take that / If you’re givin’ out love from a plastic bag,” Ed sings on the chorus, as his friend turns to new vices in hopes of feeling better.
I agree this song is intense, and what it makes even more like that, is her voice. It sounds amazing, so raw and emotional. I love her voice, I wish she would make more songs like these so her voice could be really taken seirously