Andrea has headlined everywhere from the Nuyorican Poet's Café, to Pride Fests and Lady Fests, to high schools and universities throughout the country. They have been showcased on Free Speech TV, Dyke TV, the documentary Slam Planet, and Independent Radio Stations nationwide. They are featured on New York City's 2004 Best of Urbana CD, and are currently a member of the prestigious Bullhorn Collective "comprised of 30 of the highest ranking slam poets and most accomplished performance poets in the world." They have shared the stage with such names as Leslie Feinberg, Amy Goodman, Dennis Kucinich and KRS1.
Andrea's poetry deconstructs the foundations of the current political machine, highlighting issues such as patriarchy, gender norms, white-supremacy, and capitalist culture. Their words are honest, humble and "oh my god, I can't believe you said that in public!" (ex-girlfriend #4).
Andrea is an independent artist who has self-released four CDs, Bullets and Windchimes (2003), Swarm (2004), When The Bough Breaks (2006), and Yellowbird (2009).
They have also self published three books, Trees That Grow in Cemeteries, Yellow Bird, and What the Yarn Knows of Sweaters.
Write Bloody Publishing published their nationally distributed collection of poems in 2008, Pole Dancing To Gospel Hymns.
Andrea uses they/them pronouns.
from: http://www.andreagibson.org/
Anything
Andrea Gibson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Tonight I want to slit my wrists
hold the blood to god's lips and say "taste this"
Tonight I would swear that even the man in the moon
is a rapist
and stars are nothing but scars
bullet wounds from humanities drive by
Tonight crying would be too easy
it would please me too much
and no I don't want you to touch me
‘cause your hands are clean
and I'm filthy
guilty with the blood of something beautiful all over me
I've been weak and leaking so much poison
in all the rivers around me the fish are dying
and the trees are vying for some light
but I'm the eternal night
Writing rhymes about wind chimes and world peace
while even in my sleep
I'm fighting wars that grind the enamel off my teeth
and I wake with my jaw clenched and my body bent
thinking how many dishes have I broken this week?
in an attempt to not break myself
by taking brutal belt to my hide
cause it's hard to wanna survive
when I know if Ghandi were alive
he'd shoot me
and all the great therapists of this world might say
"girl maybe your anger is good
maybe your rage
is you emerging from the cage of everything you've been"
So I try to be zen singing mantras of
om mani padme hum
But God fears me too much to hear me
and my heart beats another kid in the candy store
and his mother calls the cops
and every time the clock tics
I start tic tic tic talking more shit
my voice sounding the crucifixion of everything holy
I've got blisters on my tongue
from pounding nails into hearts of prophets
and just when I think I can stop it
Satan resurrects inside me
and everything around me turns to hell
last night I stole pennies from a wishing well
to buy rope
to lynch the last inch of hope from the planet from the planet
And all
because you have a new girlfriend and I can't stand it
and I know it doesn't make sense
I know we decided to be just friends
but I didn't think we'd be just friends forever
I mean…
I wanted to be eighty together
wanted to birth poems like babies together
and watch them grow up save the world
‘Cause girl
you're the only one who could ever raise the sun inside me
and I swear the ground beneath my feet
is only soft because you walk beside
There were times I thought I was so lost
even God would never find me
and then you came up right behind me
and kissed a cross onto my back
and it's things like that that got me going crazy
‘cause I was thinking maybe the breaths we'd take together
would make us live forever
and now you're killing me
look at me i'm dying
not even trying to evolve when
I wanted to be there forty years from now
when the doctor called to say
your mother might not make it another day
and I wasn't gonna be just ok
I was gonna be perfect
Was gonna make my love feel
like the first time you rode your bike without training wheels
kneel before you every day
like there was no one else before you
‘Cause I've heard your heart beat
like that breeze that could bring any violence to its knees
and the best lines i've ever written
I plagiarized every word from the thoughts of yours
I heard while you were just sitting in silence
Staring up at mars
but you never wish on shooting stars
you wish on the ones
that have the courage to shine where they are
No matter how dark the night
No matter how hard the fight
and how now do I turn away from that light
when I wanted to be eighty with you
birth babies like poems with you
and let them write themselves
I wanted to hold your heart to my ear like a sea-shell
til I could hear the tides of every tear you've ever cried
then build islands in the seas of your eyes
so you'd see there's land to swim to
hold your hand and say "storms are born
from the same sky we write hymns to when the sun shines"
sometimes it takes tempests to wake rainbows
that will wind our pain into halos
Was gonna carve your name into my wrist
so my pulse could kiss you
Was gonna love you so well
I'd wake every morning
and tell you things like this…
bliss is the moments you're with me
when your gone my life hurts like hell
but I'll do anything to make you happy
even if it means setting you free
to be with someone else
The song "Anything" by Andrea Gibson is a powerful expression of extreme emotional pain and suicidal thoughts. In the lyrics, the singer describes feeling overwhelmed with anger, guilt, and despair, and imagining self-harm as a way to release those feelings. The image of holding blood to God's lips represents a desire for ultimate surrender and a need for validation from a higher power. The singer also expresses feelings of worthlessness and contamination, as well as a sense of responsibility for the world's suffering, as though she is poisoning the environment. She expresses frustration with the limitations of therapy and spiritual practice in dealing with her deep-seated pain, and ends with a heartbreaking acknowledgment of her unrequited love for someone who has moved on.
Line by Line Meaning
Tonight I want to slit my wrists
hold the blood to god's lips and say "taste this"
Tonight I feel so much pain that I want to commit suicide and make God, who we believe is perfect and without flaws, feel the pain I am feeling.
Tonight I would swear that even the man in the moon
is a rapist
and stars are nothing but scars
bullet wounds from humanities drive by
firing at the face of the sky
Tonight I am so overwhelmed with negative thoughts that I am projecting my feelings of sexual assault onto the moon, and seeing the stars as reminders of all the violence and cruelty in the world.
Tonight crying would be too easy
it would please me too much
and no I don't want you to touch me
‘cause your hands are clean
and I'm filthy
guilty with the blood of something beautiful all over me
Tonight I am so broken and damaged that I feel like crying would be too easy, and that I don't deserve any help or care from others because I am stained with the consequences of something beautiful that I have destroyed.
I've been weak and leaking so much poison
in all the rivers around me the fish are dying
and the trees are vying for some light
but I'm the eternal night
Writing rhymes about wind chimes and world peace
while even in my sleep
I'm fighting wars that grind the enamel off my teeth
and I wake with my jaw clenched and my body bent
thinking how many dishes have I broken this week?
in an attempt to not break myself
by taking brutal belt to my hide
cause it's hard to wanna survive
when I know if Ghandi were alive
he'd shoot me
I am struggling with so much internal chaos that it is affecting everything around me, and I can't stop fighting even in my sleep. I am plagued with thoughts of self-harm and self-hatred, and I am constantly trying to contain my emotions from causing further destruction.
and all the great therapists of this world might say
"girl maybe your anger is good
maybe your rage
is you emerging from the cage of everything you've been"
So I try to be zen singing mantras of
om mani padme hum
But God fears me too much to hear me
and my heart beats another kid in the candy store
and his mother calls the cops
and every time the clock tics
I start tic tic tic talking more shit
my voice sounding the crucifixion of everything holy
Despite the advice of people who may have the knowledge to help me, I can't control my anger and rage. Instead, I try to use meditation and repetition to soothe myself, but my emotions and impulses are too intense and unpredictable. I feel like God is ignoring me because of the darkness and negativity inside me.
I've got blisters on my tongue
from pounding nails into hearts of prophets
and just when I think I can stop it
Satan resurrects inside me
and everything around me turns to hell
last night I stole pennies from a wishing well
to buy rope
to lynch the last inch of hope from the planet from the planet
I am consumed by hatred and frustration to the point that I feel like I'm causing harm to anything good or pure around me. I feel like I'm actively trying to destroy hope and positivity in the world, and am incapable of stopping myself from causing harm.
And all
because you have a new girlfriend and I can't stand it
and I know it doesn't make sense
I know we decided to be just friends
but I didn't think we'd be just friends forever
I mean…
I wanted to be eighty together
wanted to birth poems like babies together
and watch them grow up save the world
‘Cause girl
you're the only one who could ever raise the sun inside me
and I swear the ground beneath my feet
is only soft because you walk beside
All my negativity and self-hatred is stemming from the fact that the person I love is with someone else. I feel like I have lost the chance to have a life filled with love, creativity, and purpose because of this one person.
There were times I thought I was so lost
even God would never find me
and then you came up right behind me
and kissed a cross onto my back
and it's things like that that got me going crazy
‘cause I was thinking maybe the breaths we'd take together
would make us live forever
and now you're killing me
I was once at the brink of giving up on everything, until this person showed me love and compassion. I started believing in a future with them, but now that future is gone and it's making me feel like I'm dying inside.
I wanted to hold your heart to my ear like a sea-shell
til I could hear the tides of every tear you've ever cried
then build islands in the seas of your eyes
so you'd see there's land to swim to
hold your hand and say "storms are born
from the same sky we write hymns to when the sun shines"
sometimes it takes tempests to wake rainbows
that will wind our pain into halos
Was gonna carve your name into my wrist
so my pulse could kiss you
I wanted to be the one to comfort you in all your struggles, and amplify the beauty and goodness inside you. I wanted to show you that even in the toughest of times, we can still find hope and positivity. I was willing to make sacrifices to prove my love to you.
Was gonna love you so well
I'd wake every morning
and tell you things like this…
bliss is the moments you're with me
when your gone my life hurts like hell
but I'll do anything to make you happy
even if it means setting you free
to be with someone else
I was so devoted to you that I was willing to do anything to make you happy, even if that meant letting you go and being with someone else. Your happiness was all I ever wanted.
Contributed by Samuel J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
lolx0000r
She is amazing, I can't stop listening to her.
zabuzahoshigaki
It's like she knows exactly what's going inside my chest. My favorite poem by far! God she's amazing!
PrettyBoiJazzy22
As I look into her eyes and see. Beauty. Light. And true divine that opens its petals to drink in love so pure and free. Waking up to the welcoming sun right before me. Like the bitter snow that falls to the earth below. She kisses my lips. Tenderly. Softly. And refuses to let me go. Awakening my soul like the sun awakens the earth's holy core. And yet, she makes me beg for even more. (Unfinished by me Kelli R. Hall @CopyrightKRH12) -KRH Love Andrea! She inspires me to write even more!
Anthony Farthing
This just emotionally destroyed me . wow! having recently had my heart completely obliterated, I felt every word of this .
Frank Malaba
I have been listening to her since midnight. It is 2pm now. I have cried and cried. She is unlike anything I have ever heard before.
jackrockz321
As sad as it is, her heartbreak has been amazing for her. Beauty in words
KandiBabyy
I just can’t....
I’ve spent every day of the past 6 years GRIEVING you and I don’t know how that’s even possible if just hours ago the insults from your mouth were echoing out of my speaker phone.....I’ve grieved you and the family that we started (to be all together-NOT split down the middle, both of us with a son, and / brothers without each other).
Dovely Godess
Perfectly said, Andrea
Depression Expression
Damn. This is amazing.
alexis saeyang
This poem describes everything