Lyric discussion by danafoth 

Cover art for Wires lyrics by Neighbourhood, The

My take on this song is that his friend tried to succeed, but eventually the stress of not being successful drove him to use illicit substances to which he became addicted. The addiction and the cravings are represented by the 'wires' pulling him, and the line, "If he said help me kill the president" shows possible delusions, hallucinations, or warped perception due to drug use.