Remember to Breathe

I really do not believe this song is as simplistic as most of you seem to think, as a very common theme people have recited is that the song is just about getting ready/being nervous for a date. The way he signs this song is too emotional and powerful to be conveying such a happy-go-lucky theme.

Rather, I think the simplistic lyrics are to convey a point of shallowness he feels from his significant other. Also, she seems to care most about the impressions of people other than the two of them. Notice the theme:

"She fixes her lips" "They always look perfect." These two thoughts are contradictory and also related. Related because they might always look perfect because she is always fixing them, but also she is always fixing something that already looks perfect. Clearly this person who he is singing about is very concerned with outward appearances, too much so it seems. Is she fixing the looks for him, or for everyone else? Probably the later based on the subsequent lyrics.

The significant other also seems self-involved that she is nearly oblivious to him, probably because she is so worried about what everyone else is thinking. "She told me she liked it ONCE" She has only told him once? The emphasis on the word "once" makes it seem like she fails to notice him properly, maybe because she is too worried about herself and what everyone else thinks.

And finally, "I am starting to panic" over a type of shoes. Clearly he feels he cannot be himself around her. Probably because he knows she is so concerned about outward appearances and the thoughts of everyone else. Panicking over a type of shoe to wear is not healthy, it either comes from a complete lack of self esteem or a great deal of pressure from another person, again based on the common theme, I think its pressure from her.

Finally, look at her advice to him: "Remember to breathe." That advice is so vague and impersonal, that it doesn't even help. That advice might be helpful if he was running a marathon or having a baby, but not for the situation of the song. He probably mentioned all the pressure she puts on him makes him nervous, so she ignored the real problem (her) and just told him, oh remember to breathe and everything will be okay. She isn't observant to how he feels, which is probably neglected and pressured to conform to her idea of a "chic" couple or something.

Perhaps the pain and emotion he expresses while singing comes from a strong feeling of love he had for her, but she loved herself more. Or maybe she was so concerned about everyone else that she ruined what could have been something special. I guess we will never know, but clearly the song is about more than just being nervous for a date.