She wields the latter to excellent effect in the frequently downloaded “Unstable,” a not-so-thinly veiled recollection of her days playing keytar in the dance-rock outfit Cobra Starship, with whom she toured extensively. (That track is so beloved by Jordana’s legion of online fans that a handful have gone so far as to create YouTube videos to accompany it.)
Not that Jordana is a one-note gal. “Sweet Rosalyn” is a contemporary “I lied on the stand for you, baby” torch song, and “Young Love” is a balls-out alt-rock classic in the making. Equally at home performing pop, new wave, hip-hop, rock, disco and various combinations thereof, she’s also skilled in piano, guitar, the aforementioned keytar and a host of electronic music-making tools.
And she knows how to pick collaborators. She’s recorded with up-and-comer Secondhand Serenade and written with Colby Odonis (“What You Got”), currently signed to Akon’s Konvict Music, as well as *NSYNC’s JC Chasez and The Summer Obsession’s Lucien “Luke Skywalker” Walker. Skywalker is a particularly apt partner, as evidenced by his rhyming on “Nymphomaniac” and “Unstable.” “Madonna was my idol growing up,” Jordana volunteers, “partly because she always collaborated with such great people.”
Another influence, The Beatles, inspired Jordana to add guitar to her repertoire. “I started taking piano lessons when I was four,” she says. “But then I fell in love with the Beatles. I went from singing their songs to wanting to play their songs – on guitar. I thought guitar was the cooler instrument.” She remembers seeing and being “all over” Sade, Whitney Houston and New Kids on the Block, but it was Debbie Gibson who really inspired her. “I was drawn to her,” she confirms. “I thought I was just like her because she sang pop music and she wrote her own material, and I was writing songs just like hers.”
Jordana’s first composition, written when she was seven, was about a lost dog named Chessie who was wondering around the ranch where she and her family vacationed. She recalls, tongue firmly in cheek: “It had two chords, D minor and A. It was sad but still poppy, with a monster hook. And it had that great chorus lyric: ‘I love Chessie.’”
Come middle school, Jordana tried to put together a band. “But I was the only one who took it seriously, so I was forced to become a solo artist,” she says. Her efforts paid off in high school when she was asked repeatedly to write songs for the school musical. “That was my reason to live,” she insists.
Raised in Old Bridge, N.J., Jordana lit out for New York City at 17. She fell in with Queen Latifah’s Flavor Unit crowd, and eventually found herself in a studio with Wyclef Jean, who encouraged her musical ambitions, and, of all people, Tom Jones. During these vagabond days, she occasionally found herself homeless, which she’d remedy by spending the night at Penn Station or couch-surfing, i.e. “meeting people at clubs and staying with them for as long as they’d have me.”
Clubs were also fertile ground for performing, employment and gathering ideas. A stint as a go-go dancer was particularly instructive. “I loved the music,” she says. “I’d hear it in my head after I left the club and it would inspire all these melodies. By the time I got home, songs would be pouring out of me.”
It was also at a club that she met Cobra Starship frontman Gabriel Saporta, whom she’d seen perform years before. She marched up to him and, after very little preamble, said, “I should sing in your band.” “Of course he said, ‘I’m singing,’” she relates. “So I said, ‘I can play any instrument in that band; what do you want me to play?’ And that’s how I ended up in Cobra Starship playing keytar.”
Her tenure in the band saw her sharing stages with Fall Out Boy, Panic at the Disco, Gym Class Heroes, 30 Seconds to Mars and Jack’s Mannequin, among others. She also appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” playing “Bring It,” Cobra Starship’s contribution to the Snakes on a Plane soundtrack.
In 2007 her membership in the group was revoked, about which Jordana remains philosophical. “Gabe gave me a huge break,” she says, “and he really inspired me. Being in that band was an important experience for me. I’d watch Gabe onstage every night, and it just made me want to write and sing and do my own thing.”
Her own thing took a giant leap forward after an afternoon of playing Guitar Hero with a seven-year-old. He subsequently turned her on to the recording program GarageBand. “I bought a Mac that day,” she says, “and started playing around on GarageBand. I recorded a bunch of songs” – some of which feature her dog barking in the background – “and put them up on MySpace, and all of a sudden people were contacting me and telling me how much they liked my music.” Music-industry types began sniffing around not long afterward.
Jordana, meanwhile, is well on her way to amassing enough material for an album, with “Nymphomaniac” likely its first single. This would surely please the commentator who recently opined on the music site www.threeimaginarygirls.com: “If you … have spent the last several years lamenting the dearth of upper-middle-class suburban wink-wink hip-hop song recasting, you will dance the dance of joy when your ears are massaged by the songs ‘Nymphomaniac’ and ‘Barbados.’”
Speaking of the dance of joy, Jordana declares: “A lot of people complain about where music’s going these days, but I like it. I love progressive, innovative, crazy dance music and I hear interesting stuff like that all the time. It doesn’t take itself too seriously, and neither do I.”
LINE UP
Elisa Jordana Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He drives me crazy (uh huh)
I wanna be his lady (uh huh)
But he's got me in a line up
I'm in the back of the line
You're time is up
Expecting me to sympathize
He wants me, but it doesn't fly
He's making me run off to the other guys
Got me on lock, hypnotized with his moves
And his lips and his honest eyes
I gotta admit that I'm on the line
Cuz he ditched me yet another time
Wont wait for you boy
Wont wait for you (no no, no no, no)
I'm on the move boy
I'm on the move
Not dedicated to you
He drives me crazy (uh huh)
I wanna be his lady (uh huh)
But he's got me in a line up
I'm in the back of the line (Crazy, crazy)
You're time is up
He's got me in a line (up)
He's got me in a line (up)
He's got me in a line (up)
A line (up), a line (up)
Everything with us is emotional (Hey!)
He's making me feel so out of control (Oh!)
I can't belive I'm sticking around (Hey!)
He's putting us on cruise control (I feel you!)
I feel like he's not paying attention (Hey!)
When we're talking on the phone (I hear it)
Girls in the background screaming out loud
When I'm the one that's home alone
Wont wait for you boy
Wont wait for you (no no, no no, no)
I'm on the move boy
I'm on the move
Not dedicated to you
He drives me crazy (uh huh)
I wanna be his lady (uh huh)
But he's got me in a line up
I'm in the back of the line (Crazy, crazy)
You're time is up
He's got me in a line (up)
He's got me in a line (up)
He's got me in a line (up)
A line (up), a line (up)
Why can't we get together one on one?
I hate it when you text me to come to your shows
You never give me any special attention
Boy I'm sick of your excuses for a no
I think you're confusing me for one of those girls
With no ride, no clothes, no confidence
No pride, no day, no night will I wait on any mans line
He drives me crazy (uh huh)
I wanna be his lady (uh huh)
But he's got me in a line up
I'm in the back of the line (Crazy, crazy)
You're time is up
He's got me in a line (up)
He's got me in a line (up)
He's got me in a line (up)
A line (up), a line (up)
In "Line Up," Elisa Jordana sings about a complicated and emotionally-charged relationship. She starts off by confessing that she's crazy about the guy, but he's got her waiting in a line up, and her time is running out. She's frustrated that he always lies and expects her to sympathize, while making her run off to other guys. She says he's got her on lock, hypnotized with his moves, and she admits that she's in line waiting for him again even though he's ditched her before.
The chorus repeats with slight variations to emphasize her feelings of frustration, anger, and the desire to move on from this situation. Elisa suggests that he's not paying attention to her and that he's putting their relationship on cruise control, while she's the one doing all the waiting and hoping. She's tired of being in the back of the line and not getting the special attention she deserves. The song ends with Elisa declaring that she won't wait for him anymore and won't be dedicated to him.
Overall, "Line Up" is an anthem for anyone who's tired of waiting around for someone who doesn't value them. It's a relatable and catchy song that captures the roller coaster of emotions in a challenging relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
He drives me crazy (uh huh)
I am deeply attracted to him despite his flaws
I wanna be his lady (uh huh)
I desire a romantic relationship with him
But he's got me in a line up
He has me waiting in line for his attention and affection
I'm in the back of the line
I am not a priority to him and must wait my turn
You're time is up
I am ready to move on from waiting for him
Always run around telling lies
He is not honest with me and frequently lies
Expecting me to sympathize
He wants me to understand and forgive his behavior
He wants me, but it doesn't fly
He desires me, but his actions do not match his words
He's making me run off to the other guys
His neglect is leading me to seek attention from other men
Got me on lock, hypnotized with his moves
He has a powerful hold on me through his actions and behavior
And his lips and his honest eyes
His physical and emotional qualities draw me in
I gotta admit that I'm on the line
I must acknowledge that I am waiting for him despite his mistreatment
Cuz he ditched me yet another time
He has once again left me hanging and alone
Wont wait for you boy, Wont wait for you (no no, no no, no)
I will not continue to wait for him and be treated poorly
I'm on the move boy, I'm on the move
I am seeking a better situation and relationship
Not dedicated to you
I am no longer committed to waiting for him
Everything with us is emotional (Hey!)
Our relationship is intense and deeply felt
He's making me feel so out of control (Oh!)
He causes me to feel overwhelmed and powerless
I can't belive I'm sticking around (Hey!)
I am surprised I am still waiting for him despite his behavior
He's putting us on cruise control (I feel you!)
He is not putting in effort to move our relationship forward
I feel like he's not paying attention (Hey!)
He is not giving me the attention and respect I deserve
When we're talking on the phone (I hear it)
Even over the phone, his lack of attention is apparent
Girls in the background screaming out loud
Other women are clamoring for his attention in the background
When I'm the one that's home alone
Despite being the one waiting for him, I am still alone and neglected
Why can't we get together one on one?
I want a real relationship with him, not just casual encounters
I hate it when you text me to come to your shows
I am tired of being treated like just another fan or groupie
You never give me any special attention
I am not receiving the special treatment and care I need from him
Boy I'm sick of your excuses for a no
His excuses for not committing to a relationship are no longer acceptable to me
I think you're confusing me for one of those girls
He may see me as just another girl competing for his attention
With no ride, no clothes, no confidence
Implying that these girls have less to offer than I do
No pride, no day, no night will I wait on any mans line
I will not compromise my self-worth and wait for him, or any man, anymore
He's got me in a line (up)
He is keeping me waiting for his attention and affection
A line (up), a line (up)
I am just another woman on his list, waiting for my turn
Contributed by Arianna H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.