Karma
Alicia Keys Lyrics


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Weren't you the one that said
That you don't want me anymore
And how you need your space
And give the keys back to your door
And how I cried and tried
And tried to make you stay with me
But still you said the love was gone
And that I had to leave

(Now you) talkin' bout a family
(Now you) sayin' I complete your dream, ooh
(Now you) sayin' I'm your everything
You're confusing me, what you say to me
Don't play with me, don't play with me, 'cause

(What goes around, comes around)
(What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me
(What goes around, comes around)
(What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back

I remember when I was sittin' home alone
Waiting for you 'til three o'clock in the morn'

And when you came home
You'd always have some sorry excuse
Half explaining to me
Like I'm just some kind of a fool
I sacrificed the things I want
Just to do things for you
But when it's time to do for me
You never come through

(Now you) wanna be up under me, ayy
(Now you) have so much to say to me, hey
(Now you) wanna make time for me
What you do to me, you're confusing me
Don't play with me, don't play with me, 'cause

(What goes around, comes around)
(What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me
(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back

I remember when I was sittin' home alone
Waiting for you 'til three o'clock in the morn'
Night after night, knowing somethin' goin' on
Wasn't long before I be g-g-gone
Lord knows it wasn't easy, believe me
Never thought you'd be the one that would deceive me
And never do what you supposed to do
No need to approach me boo, 'cause I'm over you

(What goes around, comes around)
(What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me
(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Gotta stop cryin', to come back to me

(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
It's called Karma baby and it goes around
(What goes around, comes around) around




(What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me

Overall Meaning

In the song "Karma," Alicia Keys sings about an ex-lover who left her despite her efforts to make him stay. She cries and begs him not to forsake her, but he remains firm in his decision to end things. However, the tables turn when he comes back to her, claiming that he wants to start a family and that she completes his dream. Alicia is confused by his sudden change of heart and warns him not to play with her emotions because karma always comes around. The lyrics take the listener on a journey of an emotional roller coaster and paint a picture of a woman who has been wronged but doesn't take it lying down.


Throughout the song, Keys plays with the concept of karma, suggesting that the ex-lover will get what he deserves. She sings, "What goes around, comes around," indicating that she believes that if he hurt her, he'll eventually experience a similar pain. The lyrics are raw and emotional, with Keys showcasing her incredible vocal range, especially when she sings, "Now who's crying, desiring to come back to me."


In summary, "Karma" is a song about the consequences of a failed relationship where one person leaves the other. Eventually, the one who left comes back, but the other person is not willing to play any games, making it a classic karma situation where the person who wronged reap what they sow.


Line by Line Meaning

Weren't you the one that said
You were the one who said that you didn't want me anymore


That you don't want me anymore
You no longer want to be with me


And how you need your space
You said that you needed space


And give the keys back to your door
You returned the keys to my front door


And how I cried and tried
I cried and tried to make you stay


And tried to make you stay with me
I tried to make you stay with me


But still you said the love was gone
You said that the love was gone


And that I had to leave
And you asked me to leave


(Now you) talkin' bout a family
Now you're talking about starting a family with me


(Now you) sayin' I complete your dream, ooh
You're saying that I complete your dream


(Now you) sayin' I'm your everything
You're saying that I'm everything to you


You're confusing me, what you say to me
You're confusing me with what you're saying


Don't play with me, don't play with me, 'cause
Don't play with me, don't mess with me


(What goes around, comes around
The consequences of your actions will come back to you


What goes up, must come down)
Anything that goes up must eventually come down


Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me
Now you're the one who is crying and wanting to come back to me


I remember when I was sittin' home alone
I remember when I was sitting at home by myself


Waiting for you 'til three o'clock in the morn'
Waiting for you until three in the morning


And when you came home
And when you finally came home


You'd always have some sorry excuse
You always had some lame excuse


Half explaining to me
Only partially explaining to me


Like I'm just some kind of a fool
Like I'm some kind of a fool


I sacrificed the things I want
I gave up the things I wanted


Just to do things for you
Just to do things for you


But when it's time to do for me
But when it's time to do something for me


You never come through
You never follow through


(Now you) wanna be up under me, ay
Now you want to be close to me


(Now you) have so much to say to me, hey
Now you have so much to say to me


(Now you) want to make time for me
Now you want to make time for me


What you do to me, you're confusing me
What you're doing to me is confusing me


Don't play with me, don't play with me, 'cause
Don't play with me, don't mess with me


Gotta stop cryin', to come back to me
You need to stop crying if you want to come back to me


It's called Karma baby and it goes around
This is called Karma and it comes full circle


(What goes around, comes around) around
The consequences of your actions will come back to you


Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me
Now you're the one who is crying and wanting to come back to me




Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave
Written by: Alicia J Augello Cook, Kerry D Jr Brothers, Taneisha Smith

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Most interesting comments from YouTube:

@josevincentoralde4364

Weren't you the one that said
That you don't want me anymore
And how you need your space
And give the keys back to your door
And how I cried and tried
And tried to make you stay with me
But still you said the love was gone
And that I had to leave

talkin' bout a family
(Now you) sayin' I complete your dream
(Now you) sayin' I'm your everything
You're confusing me, what you say to me
Don't play with me, don't play with me, 'cause

(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me
(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back

I remember when I was sittin' home alone
Waiting for you 'til three o'clock in the morn'

And when you came home
You'd always have some sorry excuse
Half explaining to me
Like I'm just some kind of a fool
I sacrificed the things I want
Just to do things for you
But when it's time to do for me
You never come through

wanna be up under me
(Now you) have so much to say to me, hey
(Now you) want to make time for me
What you do to me, your confusing me
Don't play with me, don't play with me, 'cause

(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin, desirin' to come back to me
(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin, desirin' to come back

I remember when I was sittin' home alone
Waiting for you 'til three o'clock in the morn'
Night after night, knowing somethin' goin' on
Wasn't long before I be g-g-gone
Lord knows it wasn't easy, believe me
Never thought you'd be the one that would deceive me
And never do what you supposed to do
No need to approach me boo, 'cause I'm over you

(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me
(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Gotta stop cryin', to come back to me

(Goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
He's cryin', cryin, my baby
And it goes around
(What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down)
Now who's cryin', desirin' to come back to me



@sholehmahfudin4408

"Karma"

Weren't you the one that said that you don't want me anymore
And how you need your space and give the keys back to your door
And how I cried and tried and tried to make you stay with me
But still you said that love was gone and that I had to leave

Now you, talking 'bout a family
Now you, saying I complete your dream
Now you, saying I'm your everything
You're confusing me
What you say to me
Don't play with me
Don't play with me

'Cause what goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down
Now who's crying, desiring to come back to me
What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down
Now who's crying, desiring to come back

I remember when
I was sitting home alone
Waiting for you
'Til three o'clock in the morn'

And when you came home, you'd always have some sorry excuse
Half-explaining to me, like I'm just some kind of a fool
I sacrificed the things I want just to do things for you
But when it's time to do for me, you never come through

Now you, wanna be a part of me (Ay)
Now you, have so much to say to me (Hey)
Now you, wanna make time for me
What you doing to me?
You're confusing me
Don't play with me
Don't play with me

'Cause what goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down
Now who's crying, desiring to come back to me
What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down
Now who's crying, desiring to come back

I remember when
I was sitting home alone
Waiting for you
'Til three o'clock in the morn

Night after night
Knowing something going on
Wasn't home before me
You was, you was gone
Lord knows it wasn't easy, believe me
Never thought you'd be the one that would deceived me
And never do what you was supposed to do
No need to approach me boo, 'cause I'm over you

'Cause what goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down
Now who's crying, desiring to come back to me
What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down
Gotta stop trying, to come back to me
What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must come down

It's called karma, baby
And it goes around
What goes around, comes around
What goes up, must comes down
Now who's crying, desiring to come back to me



All comments from YouTube:

@prestozer

This woman was so big back then, more talented than Beyonce

@damionasplace9517

Why must we compare? They are both great artist in their own right ✅

@stephenanderson1594

This is when artists cared about their videos Alicia even travel to Italy to get those awesome shots merging New York hip hop with Italian strings representing her mixed Black and Italian heritage. The video looks exactly like the song if that makes sense LOL.

@itsAurora-zq8cb

Wow I didn't no she had Italian roots. . That's really awesome she transferred this into the video

@valentinaelenasavin8202

Somebody would say that they love to appear but honestly,this is the kind of art ,where u slap everyone with beeing really a PERFECTIONIST

@patremagilbert8787

True

@patremagilbert8787

Now everything is CGI

@christiana.2755

This video was shot in Altos de Chavon, DR not Italy. But ok lol

3 More Replies...

@ayotadhiambo

The violin is so prominent here and it's the icing on the cake of this song!

@rebeccablack1286

What type of cake?, i love cake! 🍰

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