Peng Hong's WA1 Song Project

Before you go by Lewis Capaldi

Before you Go

Verse 1I fell by the wayside, like everyone elseI hate you, I hate you, I hate youBut I was just kidding myselfOur every moment, I start to replaceCause now that they're goneAll I hear are the words that I needed to sayPre-chorusWhen you hurt under the surfaceLike troubled water running coldWell, time can heal, but this won'tChorusSo, before you goWas there something I could've saidTo make your heart beat better?If only I'd have known you had a storm to weatherSo, before you goWas there something I could've saidTo make it all stop hurting?It kills me how your mind can make you feel so worthlessSo, before you goVerse 2Was never the right time, whenever you calledWent little, by little, by little until there was nothing at allOur every moment, I start to replayBut all I can think about is seeing that look on your facePre-chorusWhen you hurt under the surfaceLike troubled water running coldWell, time can heal, but this won'tChorusSo, before you goWas there something I could've saidTo make your heart beat better?If only I'd have known you had a storm to weatherSo, before you goWas there something I could've saidTo make it all stop hurting?It kills me how your mind can make you feel so worthlessSo, before you goBridgeWould we be better off by nowIf I'd let my walls come down?Maybe I guess we'll never knowYou know, you knowChorusBefore you go
Was there something I could've said
To make your heart beat better?
If only I'd have known you had a storm to weather
So, before you go
Was there something I could've said
To make it all stop hurting?
It kills me how your mind can make you feel so worthless
So, before you go

Main Idea of Before You Go

The song serves as an indicator of the speaker's emotional turmoil at the regret he has for not helping his friend during a troubled time he is going through. The constant change in tone, from mostly regret to even anger, highlights the different emotions the speaker is feeling while mourning. The constant use of questions help to express the speaker's despair and grief as he is unable to know the answers to these questions.

Inspiration for the song

According to an interview with Apple Music’s Beats 1, Lewis said:

It’s about suicide. Not necessarily the act of it, but, like, after it happens, the aftermath of it. And people kind of blaming themselves or starting to think, you know, “What could I have done to help that person?” or whatever. When I was five or six, my aunt committed suicide and I just remember recently speaking to my mom about her feelings. About going through that sort of rigmarole in your head of like, you know, “What could I have done here? Could I have done anything?”

The song is based on a family tragedy he faced when his aunt took her life by suicide. To quote Lewis: When I was five or six...my aunt committed suicide and I just remember recently speaking to my mom about her feelings," he said. "About going through that sort of rigmarole in your head of like, you know, "What could I have done here? Could I have done anything?"

"She said at first you're angry. You kinda get angry at them. And then you get angry at yourself...she said it was a very, very strange [emotional] arc."

Meaning behind the music video

The music video tells a story of a young girl who has passed on, it starts by showing cheerful memories of the girl's past with her loved ones, first with her boyfriend, then with her friends, even helping to cheer her older family members and taking care of them and her siblings, all while hiding the pain and loneliness she felt, until it resulted in her taking her own life. In the end, all of her family and friends can only stand and mourn her death, while regretting the fact that they could have done something to help her.

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