Zoloft and Xanax are both used in conjunction with each other to treat major depressive disorders and generalized anxiety disorders.
Joji may be using the addiction of the physical pills also as a reference to the girl he feels that he is “addicted” to, and needs back.
The morse code message translates to the letter sequence “x-a-n-a-x,” directly hinting at the bridge itself.
Pills
Joji Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Please don't run away
Please don't run away
Please don't run away
Where'd you go?
I thought we'd last forever
Where'd I go?
I need you back
I need you back (yeah, yeah, yeah)
I need you, bad
I need you back
So I'll fly away
Zoloft, Xanax
Zoloft, Xanax
Please don't run away
Please don't run away
(Fly, I'll fly away, away, away)
Please don't run away
Please don't run away
(Please don't run away)
I don't know why
I don't know why I feel this way
I feel the same
I don't know why
I don't know why I feel the same
I need you back
I need you back
I need you bad
I need you back (yeah, yeah, yeah)
Where'd you go?
I thought we'd last forever (last forever)
Where'd I go?
I was sinking through the leather
In Joji's song Pills, the lyrics express a deep longing for love and companionship. The repeated plea for the other person not to run away implies that there is a fear of abandonment. The lines "I don't know why I feel this way" and "I don't know why I feel the same" suggest confusion and uncertainty about one's emotions.
The line "Zoloft, Xanax" refers to prescription medications commonly used to treat anxiety and depression. The use of these drugs implies that the singer is struggling with mental health issues and is using medication to cope. However, instead of finding comfort in medication, the person still feels the need for human connection and love.
The imagery of sinking through leather is an interesting one. It could represent feeling trapped and suffocated by the world, or feeling like there is no escape from one's own pain. Overall, Pills is a melancholy and introspective song that delves into the complexities of human emotion and the search for meaning and connection.
Line by Line Meaning
Please don't run away
The singer is begging their love interest to not abandon them.
Where'd you go? I thought we'd last forever
The singer is wondering where their lover has gone and expressing disappointment that they didn't last as long as the singer thought they would.
Where'd I go? I was sinking through the leather
The singer is acknowledging their own role in the failed relationship and stating that they were drowning in their self-destructive behaviors and attitudes.
I need you back (yeah, yeah, yeah) I need you bad I need you back
The singer is expressing their intense desire to have their lover return to them and is emphasizing how much they need them.
So I'll fly away Zoloft, Xanax Zoloft, Xanax
The singer is implying that they are taking prescription drugs to suppress their emotional pain and perhaps even to escape their reality.
I don't know why I feel this way I feel the same
The singer is admitting confusion and a lack of understanding in why they feel the way they do, but they also recognize that this is not a new feeling for them.
Contributed by Luke A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.