We're A Couple Of Misfits
Billie Richards Paul Soles Lyrics

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We're a couple of misfits
We're a couple of misfits
What's the matter with misfits
That's where we fit in!
We're not daffy and dilly
Don't go 'round willy nilly
Seems to us kinda silly
That we don't fit in.

We may be different from the rest
Who decides the test
Of what is really best?
We're a couple of misfits
We're a couple of misfits
What's the matter with misfits
That's where we fit in!
Why am I such a misfit?
I am not just a nit wit!
I'm an adorable reindeer
Why don't I fit in?
Why am I such a misfit?
I am not just a nit wit!
They can't fire me.
I quit!
Seems I don't fit in
We may be different from the rest
Who decides the test
Of what is really best?
We're a couple of misfits
We're a couple of misfits

What's the matter with misfits
That's where we fit in!

Overall Meaning

The song "We're A Couple of Misfits" is a charming and whimsical song, sung by Billie Richards and Paul Soles's voiced characters, Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and Hermey the Elf in the 1964 stop-motion animated film produced by Rankin/Bass. Through the lyrics, Rudolph and Hermey express their feelings of isolation and rejection from their respective communities because they are different. They rejoice in their "misfit" status, which is the place where they feel they can belong. The song's opening line, "We're a couple of misfits," is a declaration that sets the tone for the rest of the song. This statement is an acknowledgment that Rudolph and Hermey feel isolated and misunderstood in the world around them.

The chorus of the song, "What's the matter with misfits? That's where we fit in!" serves, as a way of saying that they don't belong anywhere else, but being misfits is where they belong. They are happy to be themselves despite societal pressure to conform, and they reject the notion that there is something wrong with being different. Hermey asks the poignant question, "Why am I such a misfit?" and answers it himself, saying, "I'm an adorable reindeer." This line speaks to the idea that sometimes people are misunderstood or criticized because of someone else's lack of understanding.

Line by Line Meaning

We're a couple of misfits
We don't quite fit in with the norm

What's the matter with misfits
Why is it considered a problem to be different?

That's where we fit in!
Being different is where we belong

We're not daffy and dilly
We're not foolish or whimsical

Don't go 'round willy nilly
We're not aimlessly wandering around

Seems to us kinda silly
It seems foolish to try and conform

That we don't fit in.
That we don't conform to societal standards

We may be different from the rest
We acknowledge that we stand out from the crowd

Who decides the test
Who determines what is considered normal or acceptable?

Of what is really best?
What truly makes one better or worse?

Why am I such a misfit?
Why don't I fit into societal expectations?