This song seemingly tackles the methods of deception those who manipulate others use to get victims to follow their demands, as well as diverting attention away from important issues. They'll also use it as a means to convince people to hate or kill others by pretending acts of terrorism were committed by the enemy when the acts themselves were done by the masters of control to promote discrimination and hate. It also reinforces the idea that these manipulative forces operate in various locations, infiltrating everyday life without detection, and propagate any and everywhere.
In general, it highlights the danger of hidden agendas, manipulation, and distraction, serving as a critique of those who exploit chaos and confusion to control and gain power, depicting a cautionary tale against falling into their traps. It encourages us to question the narratives presented to us and remain vigilant against manipulation in various parts of society.
Now and then I think of when we were together
Like when you said you felt so happy you could die
Told myself that you were right for me
But felt so lonely in your company
But that was love and it's an ache I still remember
You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness
Like resignation to the end, always the end
So when we found that we could not make sense
Well you said that we would still be friends
But I'll admit that I was glad it was over
But you didn't have to cut me off
Make out like it never happened and that we were nothing
And I don't even need your love
But you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough
No, you didn't have to stoop so low
Have your friends collect your records and then change your number
I guess that I don't need that though
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now and then I think of all the times you screwed me over
But had me believing it was always something that I'd done
But I don't wanna live that way
Reading into every word you say
You said that you could let it go
And I wouldn't catch you hung up on somebody that you used to know
But you didn't have to cut me off
Make out like it never happened and that we were nothing
And I don't even need your love
But you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough
No, you didn't have to stoop so low
Have your friends collect your records and then change your number
I guess that I don't need that though
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Somebody (I used to know)
(Somebody) now you're just somebody that I used to know
Somebody (I used to know)
(Somebody) now you're just somebody that I used to know
I used to know, that I used to know, I used to know somebody
Like when you said you felt so happy you could die
Told myself that you were right for me
But felt so lonely in your company
But that was love and it's an ache I still remember
You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness
Like resignation to the end, always the end
So when we found that we could not make sense
Well you said that we would still be friends
But I'll admit that I was glad it was over
But you didn't have to cut me off
Make out like it never happened and that we were nothing
And I don't even need your love
But you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough
No, you didn't have to stoop so low
Have your friends collect your records and then change your number
I guess that I don't need that though
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Now and then I think of all the times you screwed me over
But had me believing it was always something that I'd done
But I don't wanna live that way
Reading into every word you say
You said that you could let it go
And I wouldn't catch you hung up on somebody that you used to know
But you didn't have to cut me off
Make out like it never happened and that we were nothing
And I don't even need your love
But you treat me like a stranger and that feels so rough
No, you didn't have to stoop so low
Have your friends collect your records and then change your number
I guess that I don't need that though
Now you're just somebody that I used to know
Somebody (I used to know)
(Somebody) now you're just somebody that I used to know
Somebody (I used to know)
(Somebody) now you're just somebody that I used to know
I used to know, that I used to know, I used to know somebody
Lyrics submitted by 60_miles_an_hour, edited by PoonKnows, Nemo123
Somebody That I Used to Know Lyrics as written by Walter Andre De Backer Luiz Bonfa
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Lyrics powered by LyricFind
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To me, this song is about clinging onto an illusion of the perfect person, the 'person that you used to know'. After discovering that you had in fact put them on a pedastal, and that they never were that perfect person, you are still unable to let them go because your illusions clash with reality and it is a never ending struggle between accepting who they are- and who you thought they were.
"You said that you could let it go And I wouldn't catch you hung up on somebody that you used to know..."
It is about that tiny little fibre in your body that cannot erase the memory of them, and that tiny little fibre is what causes most of the conflict: your voice speaks and says that you would never be hung up over this person, and yet, the entire song is dedicated to the memory of that person and the damage they have caused you. so you ARE, after all, hung up on them...and that is the contrast between your voice (voice of reason) and your heart (with which your true feelings lie)....I think that might be why there is such a huge play on body parts in the video clip...and how each body part is colored differently...it represents all the different thoughts in your mind that are contradicting each other.
I think that you have made a great point...he is caught up on his illusion of the perfect person. He wanted so badly for this girl to be his everything, although she wasn't and the relationship wasn't meant to be. Who gets caught up with someone whom he feels "so lonely" in her company and is glad when it is over? He starts to paint himself and her in the same colors, trying so desperately for this to work and for her to be what he wants her to be.<br /> <br /> It seems like during the relationship, she was tired of being put on that pedestal and tired of being expected to be his perfect someone. She "found that we could not make sense" and didn't want to deal with the pain and sadness of trying to be perfect for him any longer. I think the colors coming off of her at the end of the song is here breaking out of his perfect girl mold...becoming herself once again.
I personally think you nailed it.
I really don't know how you managed to get that impression. There was nothing in the song that mentioned anyone being on a pedestal or would imply that they were idealized into some perfect form. Nor, was there any mention about any kind of clash between illusion and reality.
Actually there is an illusion with the music video. They are being painted to give the illusion they blend in to an abstract background. So I agree with missxt. I think you completely nailed the story behind the song.
agree on the mix up between illusion and reality. oh my.
you couldnt have explained it any better!! since hearing it the first time that's what it meant to me
I really can't argue with your interpretation so I'll just add to it. The first verse is just his 20/20 hindsight on the relationship well before the breakup and how he deluded himself. The line "told myself you were right for me" is the prime example of his delusion along with his association of love as an aching feeling instead of that feeling just being a bad vibe for him. <br /> <br /> The second verse sounds like his feelings towards the end of the relationship just before the breakup occurred. The addiction to sadness shows how negative feelings have become so common place in this relationship that it is hard to separate it from the two people involved. The last three lines of this verse is just his break from delusion and him finally finding some relief in the end of the relationship til . . .<br /> <br /> The chorus of course is his post breakup feelings and how things were handled. This is where the song can go for a great twist by having the person singing this part doing it as a solemn sort of begging or as a quiet pain in that they are hurt by the fact that they are hardly even a foot note in the other person's life.<br /> <br /> The third verse is great in showing how the pain and sacrifice in the relationship didn't just belong to the first person (assuming that this is being done as a duet). It demonstrates the same signs of delusion, compromise, and sacrifice that the first two verses illustrate and the eventual realization how it isn't meant to work out. <br /> <br /> This third verse can also explain the current coupling as a result from a previous one. How he made her believe that she had done something wrong and how he was still clinging to the idea of another person from his past that he sees her as. <br /> <br /> The chorus of course is the same but it can be done in a slightly different way. Instead of singing it in a quiet and saddened way, the person can sing it as a mad, painful rant as if he's trying to defend himself in an intense argument.
Are you guys seriously this in love with this comment? This song isn't about the 'perfect person.'<br /> <br /> "Told myself that you were right for me<br /> But felt so lonely in your company"<br /> <br /> He knew all along she wasn't the perfect person. He's bemoaning the fact that even though they both spoke about how they would remain friends after the break up she's an entirely different person, somebody that he used to know...
I agree with the replies who disagree with you. There is no lyrical evidence whatsoever that the girl was put on a pedestal. <br /> <br /> The only part that you quote to defend your interpretation is 'person that you used to know' -- this saying does not have to imply that one thought that their loved one was 'more perfect before than now.'<br /> <br /> 'Somebody that I used to know' is a common idiom, saying or phrase with a specific meaning. It is clear that it is merely referring to the fact that one person really meant a lot to the other person, but after breaking up they aren't nearly as significant, they are just 'somebody that __ used to know.' <br /> <br /> In regard to the rest of your interpretation:<br />
Wow you got right on it, that's exceptionally perception, from one whom has been through that and was able to concur that somebody. I Love this song, it speaks of my current relationship. to the letter. i love your comments on that. thanks for sharing.
@missxt This interpretation is far fetched.