i want you
Common Lyrics


Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴  Line by Line Meaning ↴

Once the love was strong
Now it's long, long gone
Cause the pain, came down like a storm
I remained, holdin' on
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you

I been thinking bout
I been thinking bout
I been thinking bout you lately
Thoughts take me to when we were close
Addicted 2 your love, feel I need another dose
I know it's a feeling
That should be long gone
Things seem to come up
When I hear our song
Golden brown girl, it seem so long
Since I heard your voice
Where did the king go wrong?
Emotions that that they linger on
I guess cause I never knew a love so strong
So many hot girls
I need your warm
The taste of your mouth
Girl I need your warm
Good food and love
I need your warm
This here was made before we were born
A dreamer, so I'm a keep dreaming on
It's kinda like the breakup of Jen and Vince Vaughn

Once the love was strong
Now it's long, long gone
Cause the pain, came down like a storm
I remained, holdin' on
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you

They say you don't know know know
What you got
Till what u got is gone
Yeah I write such and such yo a lot
But the feelings not as strong
We were like two birds
That were able to fly
I try to pick the right words to say to the sky
Somedays I would try but wasn't able to cry
I never been good at saying goodbye
I take a deep breath when the times is hard
When I reminisce over u, my god
I spent many years trying to be the heartthrob
I guess it's only right that I got my heart robbed
The scent of a room that reminds me of you
A hint of perfume it remind me of you
Take a look at the moon it remind me of you
Hope the stars and the gods
Align me and you

Once the love was strong
Now it's long, long gone
Cause the pain, came down like a storm
I remained, holdin' on
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you

We do what we do
And we do what we live
I love this way
Cause I got it as a kid
Wit so much to give from it
I never hid
The love that I wrote on the mirror it got smeared
My friends say it was a change for the better
But I say, girl you changed my forever
Relationships they can be as strange as the weather
Rain or sun
We can sang this together





Cause I want you

Overall Meaning

Common's song "I Want You" talks about the pain and difficulties of a past relationship that was once strong, but no longer exists. The lyrics convey the sense of longing for someone who has moved on, and the memories that continue to linger on. The singer talks about how listening to old songs, smelling a familiar scent, or looking at the moon, can take him back to the moments spent with his lover.


The lyrics are reflective and convey a sense of loss, regret, and the desire to hold on to the past. The song also talks about the challenges faced in relationships, and how they can be as unstable as the weather. The singer's vulnerability shines through the lyrics, and his honesty about his feelings makes the song relatable.


Overall, "I Want You" is a poignant and emotional song about love, loss, and the pain of separation. It taps into the universal feeling of wanting someone who is no longer within reach, and the longing for a love that once existed.


Line by Line Meaning

Once the love was strong
At one point, our love was powerful


Now it's long, long gone
However, it has since faded away over time


Cause the pain, came down like a storm
The reason our love ended was due to a sudden onset of emotional suffering


I remained, holdin' on
Despite this, I still clung to the hope of our relationship working out


Cause I want you, cause I want you
The reason I can't let go of this love is simply because I still want you


I been thinking bout
My mind has been preoccupied with thoughts of you


Thoughts take me to when we were close
These thoughts transport me back to the time when we were in a healthy relationship


Addicted 2 your love, feel I need another dose
I was so in love with you that I have been coping with the same addiction and cannot help but think of the next time I can be with you


Things seem to come up
Memories of you just keep popping up


When I hear our song
Especially when I hear our favorite tune


Golden brown girl, it seem so long
The recollection feels like it's from a lifetime ago


Since I heard your voice
I haven't spoken to you for ages


Where did the king go wrong?
I'm not sure where we went wrong in our relationship


Emotions that they linger on
Nevertheless, I'm still processing these unresolved emotions


I guess cause I never knew a love so strong
It's perhaps because I've never experienced such powerful love before


So many hot girls
Despite there being many attractive women around me


I need your warm
I'm still yearning for your love


The taste of your mouth
Just the very thought and memory of intimacy with you fills me with the desire for more of the same


Good food and love
There's just nothing better than those two things - and I'm missing the love part of it


This here was made before we were born
I believe our love was written in the stars and meant to be from the beginning of the universe


A dreamer, so I'm a keep dreaming on
As an idealist, I'll keep dreaming about you and the future where we're together


It's kinda like the breakup of Jen and Vince Vaughn
Our breakup is similar to what happened between Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn


They say you don't know know know
As the saying goes


What you got
You never know what you have until it's gone


Till what u got is gone
This only becomes apparent after it's already gone


Yeah I write such and such yo a lot
Although I may seem to be occupied with other things


But the feelings not as strong
The truth is, nothing else can compare to the feeling I still have for you


We were like two birds
As a couple, we had enjoyed a carefree life together


That were able to fly
We were able to compliment and uplift each other, making life a true adventure


I try to pick the right words to say to the sky
When I think about you, I wonder if anything I say can reach up to the heavens or genuinely express my love for you


Somedays I would try but wasn't able to cry
Although somedays I still try to move on from our relationship, crying out my pain, tears no longer come out


I never been good at saying goodbye
I've always struggled to let go of things, especially with someone like you


I take a deep breath when the times is hard
At times when life seems overwhelming


When I reminisce over u, my god
I often think back to memories of you whenever I'm feeling down


I spent many years trying to be the heartthrob
At one point in my life, I was working hard to achieve some kind of ultimate status which might net me love - maybe even yours


I guess it's only right that I got my heart robbed
Perhaps it was due to this search that I was eventually robbed of my heart in the end


The scent of a room that reminds me of you
Certain smells evoke specific memories and feelings related to you


A hint of perfume it remind me of you
The simplest things like perfume reminds me of you because you wore it so often


Take a look at the moon it remind me of you
Even a glimpse at the moon is enough to bring back fond memories of you


Hope the stars and the gods
I hope that the stars and whatever gods may exist


Align me and you
Will align our fates together again


We do what we do
In this life, everyone behaves in their own unique way


And we do what we live
We must primarily do what satisfies, fulfills and gives us a meaning to live


I love this way
I choose to love the way I did, no matter if it was hard or if it hurts now


Cause I got it as a kid
I had this inkling of love since childhood that has stayed with me all my life, no matter what happened along the way


Wit so much to give from it
And I remained a caring, generous person thanks to that feeling of love - it's become integral to who I am today


I never hid
I was always openly expressive of my feelings towards you


The love that I wrote on the mirror it got smeared
The love I expressed towards you on the mirror has since smudged and vanished


My friends say it was a change for the better
My friends argue that following our breakup, it was just a change as they believe that there was a positive outcome to it


But I say, girl you changed my forever
But I tell you, regardless of their opinion. You have irrevocably and substantially influenced my life through our time together


Relationships they can be as strange as the weather
Relationships are at times unpredictable, and can change just as often as the weather


Rain or sun
And like the weather, it can rain or shine, bringing both good and bad times


We can sang this together
Perhaps one day we sing this song together, and reminisce on this times over a new life and timeline.




Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Will Adams, Gene Mcdaniels, Lonnie Rashied Lynn, Ivan Woods

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

@th3azscorpio

My absolute favorite part of this song is the poem at the end-

"We do what we do and we do what we live
I love this way cause I got it as a kid
With so much to give from it, I never hid
The love that I wrote on the mirror it got smeared
My friends say it was a change for the better
But I say, girl you changed my forever
Relationships they can be as strange as the weather
Rain or sun we can sing this together"



@CarlaSophieMar

"Once the love was strong
Now it's long, long gone
Cause the pain, pain now as a storm
I would make, growing old
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you

I've been thinking bout, I've been thinking bout
I've been thinking bout you lately
Thoughts take me to when we were close
Addicted to your love, feel I need another dose
I know it's a feeling that should be long gone
Things seem to come up when I hear our song
Golden brown girl, it seemed so long
Since I heard your voice, where did the king go wrong?
Emotions that, that they linger on
I guess cause I never knew a love so strong
So many hot girls I need your warm
The taste of your mouth girl I need your warm
Good food and love I need your warm
This here was made before we were born
A dreamer so I'm a keep dreaming on
It's kind of like 'The Breakup' with Jen and Vince Vaughn

Once the love was strong
Now it's long, long gone
Cause the pain, pain now as a storm
I would make, growing old
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you

They say you don't know, know, know what you got
Till what u got is gone
Yeah I write such and such, yo a lot but the feelings not as strong
We were like 2 birds that were able to fly
I try to pick the right words to say to the sky
Some days I would try but wasn't able to cry
I never been good at saying goodbye
I take a deep breath when the times is hard
When I reminisce over you, my God
I spent many years trying to be the heartthrob
I guess it's only right that I got my heart robbed
The scent of a room that reminds me of you
A hint of perfume it reminds me of you
Take a look at the moon it reminds me of you
Hope the stars and the gods align me and you

Once the love was strong
Now it's long, long gone
Cause the pain, pain now as a storm
I would make, growing old
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you

We do what we do and we do what we live
I love this way cause I got it as a kid
With so much to give from it, I never hid
The love that I wrote on the mirror it got smeared
My friends say it was a change for the better
But I say, girl you changed my forever
Relationships they can be as strange as the weather
Rain or sun we can sing this together

Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you
Cause I want you, cause I want you
I want you, I want you"



All comments from YouTube:

@corennakhieu5483

The raw emotion and pain Kerry Washington delivered in this video always makes me want to cry. I felt that! She is amazing.

@perryjohnson7659

Kerry is awesome in this video..she always played her rioles well

@pfunk42

What did you feel?

@zoradaughter

She co-directed this video, too! 😊

@ThugLifeModafocah

Yeah, you can taste the suffering from her delivery. Everything in this work is on point.

@Spaceinvaderbd

I wasn’t old enough to appreciate this song when it came out but it still sounds better than what’s out now

@DopeItzTheeOne

Big facts I was 13 when this dropped now that I'm 30 I can definitely appreciate Common's music in general way!

@LauGman

"The scent of a room that reminds me of you.
A hint of perfume it reminds me of you.
Take a look at the moon it reminds me of you.
Hope the stars and the gods align me and you."

Favorite lines... such greatness

@kggreeng1272

LauGman Deep Foreal Common been the truth!

@roberta2100

LauGman I was literally about to post this exact part, and decided to scroll down to see if someone had already posted it.

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