Airplanes
BoB Feat. Eminem & Hayley Williams Lyrics

Can we pretend that airplanes In the night sky Is like shooting stars I could really use a wish right now (wish right now, wish right now)
The singer wishes that airplanes in the sky can give him the same hopeful feeling as shooting stars. He desperately wants to have a wish granted.

Let's pretend like its '98 Like I'm eating lunch off of Styrofoam trays Trying to be the next rapper coming out the A Hoping for a record deal, to re-know my pain
The singer reminisces about the past and imagines himself as an aspiring rapper, hoping to get discovered and be successful in the music industry.

Now let's pretend like I'm on the stage And when my beat drops everybody goes insane (ok) And everybody know my name (B.o.B) And everywhere I go people wanna hear me sang Oh yea and I just dropped my new album On the first week I did five hundred thousand Gold in the spring and diamond in the fall And then a world tour just to top it all off And let's pretend like they call me the greatest Selling out arenas with big ass stages And everybody loved me and no one ever hated Let's try to use imagination
The singer daydreams about his success as a rapper, imagining himself popular and famous with millions of fans around the world admiring his music and live performances.

Okay, let's pretend like this never happened Like I never had dreams of being a rapper Like I didn't write raps in all of my classes Like I never used to runaway into the blackness Now let's pretend like it was all-good Like I didn't live starring in a notebook Like I did the things I probably knew I should But I didn't have neighbors that's why they call it hood Now let's pretend like I ain't got a name Before they ever called me B.o.B or a.k.a Bobby Ray I'm talking back before the mixtapes Before the videos and the deals and the fame Before they ever once compared me to Andre Before I ever got Myspace Before they ever noticed my face So let's just pretend and make wishes out of airplanes
The artist reflects on his humble beginnings and struggles before becoming a successful rapper. He imagines a world where he doesn't have the fame and recognition he has now and can once again make wishes like he did when he was younger.

Let's pretend Marshall Mathers never picked up a pen Let's pretend things would've been no different Pretend he procrastinated, had no motivation Pretend he just made excuses that Was so paper thin they could blow away wit the wind Marshall you never gone make it, Makes no sense to play the game it ain't no way that'll you win Pretend he just stand out side all day and play with his friends Pretend he even had a friend to say was his friend And it wasn't time to move in school no changing again He wasn't socially awkward and just strange as a kid He had a father and his mother wasn't crazy as shit And he never dreamed he can ripped stadiums he just lazy as shit Fuck a talent show in the gymnasium bitch You won't amount to shit quit day dreaming kid You need to get ya cranium check you thinking like an alien It just ain't realistic Now pretend they ain't just make him angry with this shit And there was no one he could even aim when he's pissed with And his alarm went off to wake him but he didn't make it to the rap Olympics He slept through his plane and he missed it He's gonna have a hard time explaining to Haley and Laney these food stamps and W-I-C shit 'Cause he never risked shit, he hoped and he wished it But it didn't fall in his lap so he ain't even hear it he pretends that
The artist suggests that if one pretends Eminem never became a rapper, his life would have been completely different. He imagines a world where Eminem never had the same drive and motivation that led him to success in the music industry. The artist also implies that if Eminem never pursued his dreams, he would not have experienced the negative aspects of trying to make it in the music industry, such as rejection and disappointment.

Airplanes In the night sky Is like shooting stars I could really use a wish right now (wish right now, wish right now)
The chorus is repeated one last time, showing that the singer is still struggling and hoping for a wish to come true.

(And it seems like yesterday it was just a dream But those days are gone, they're just memories And it seems yesterday it was just a dream But those days are gone)
The singer acknowledges how the past feels like a distant memory and that he can only look back and reminisce about his past struggles and dreams.