I think that money is only a very small idea of this song. Zeros and Ones reference binary states, which apply to many things beyond computers. Black and white is another binary state; nothing is in grays or colors, it's either black or white.
Much of the song seems to be about the irony of his fame (and money) for certain types of music, but desiring to break out of those molds and follow his heart into those colors and shades of gray. But he knows that, in the end, if he doesn't write certain sorts of songs, he will face rejection and criticism for it.
Much of this album (like most of his solo work) is critical of the conservative/protestant/Republican/American circles that he came out of, and much of it has been criticized as "un-Christian" because of that. That goes back to the binary state referred to in this song: the belief (among some) that one must be a hyper conservative version of all of those things, or else a pagan.
He's dying to break out of that mold, to live among the outcast subcultures, to bleed red instead of the blood-thinning black and white that he has to live in to sell.
And, as a side note, it appears that with Stockholm Syndrome, he's decided to forgo the old way and try to live in color... and it doesn't seem to be hurting him monetarily.
I think that money is only a very small idea of this song. Zeros and Ones reference binary states, which apply to many things beyond computers. Black and white is another binary state; nothing is in grays or colors, it's either black or white.
Much of the song seems to be about the irony of his fame (and money) for certain types of music, but desiring to break out of those molds and follow his heart into those colors and shades of gray. But he knows that, in the end, if he doesn't write certain sorts of songs, he will face rejection and criticism for it.
Much of this album (like most of his solo work) is critical of the conservative/protestant/Republican/American circles that he came out of, and much of it has been criticized as "un-Christian" because of that. That goes back to the binary state referred to in this song: the belief (among some) that one must be a hyper conservative version of all of those things, or else a pagan.
He's dying to break out of that mold, to live among the outcast subcultures, to bleed red instead of the blood-thinning black and white that he has to live in to sell.
And, as a side note, it appears that with Stockholm Syndrome, he's decided to forgo the old way and try to live in color... and it doesn't seem to be hurting him monetarily.