These musicals seriously tackle issues such as multiculturalism, addiction, sexual orientation and HIV. Rent was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and won four Tony Awards. The scores of his shows reveal that he was an apt composer and lyricist.
One tick, tick...BOOM! song called "Sunday" is an homage to Stephen Sondheim, who supported Larson. It stays close to the melody and lyrics of Sondheim's own song of the same title but turning it from a manifesto about art into a waiter's lament.
Among the many awards he received during and after his lifetime were: the Pulitzer Prize for Drama (for Rent), the Richard Rodgers Production Award, the Richard Rodgers Development Grant, the Stephen Sondheim Award, the Gilman and Gonzalez-Falla Theatre Foundation's Commendation Award, the Tonys for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, and Best Score of a Musical for Rent, the Drama Desks for Best Musical, Best Book of a Musical, Best Book, and Best Lyrics (also for Rent), the New York Drama Critics Circle Award for Best Musical (again for Rent), the Outer Critics Circle Award for Best Musical in the Off-Broadway category (another for Rent), and three Obie Awards for Outstanding Book, Outstanding Lyrics and Outstanding Music (yet again for Rent).
Among his many creative works are Rent, tick, tick...BOOM!, Sacrimoralimmorality (1981)with David Armstrong (retitled Saved for the one-week run on 42nd Street), Superbia, the music for J.P. Morgan Saves the Nation, numerous individual numbers, music for Sesame Street, music for the children's book cassettes of An American Tail and Land Before Time, music for Rolling Stone magazine publisher Jann Wenner, and four songs for the children's video Away We Go! (which he also conceived and directed).
Larson died unexpectedly of an undiagnosed aortic dissection (aortic aneurysm), believed to have been caused by Marfan syndrome, on January 25th, 1996. It was ten days before his 36th birthday, and the night before Rent's first preview off-Broadway.
After his death, Larson's family and friends started the Jonathan Larson Performing Arts Foundation.
In 2005, a film version of his most popular production Rent was released, directed by Christopher Columbus.
In September of 2008, Rent closed after 12 successful years on broadway. One of the final shows and the finale were filmed for a limited engagement film, "Rent: Filmed Live on Broadway." The DVD and Blu-Ray disc were released was in February 2009.
Currently original cast members Anthony Rapp, Adam Pascal, and Gwen Stewart are performing on the farewell broadway tour of the show.
Rent
Jonathan Larson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
When real life's getting more
Like fiction each day
Headlines, bread lines
Blow my mind
And now this deadline
"Eviction or pay"
Rent
How do you write a song
When the chords sound wrong
Though they once sounded right and rare
When the notes are sour
Where is the power
You once had to ignite the air
We're hungry and frozen
Some life that we've chosen
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
Last year's rent
How do you start a fire
When there's nothing to burn
And it feels like something's stuck in your flue
How can you generate heat
When you can't feel your feet
And they're turning blue
You light up a mean blaze
With posters
And screenplays
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
Last year's rent
How do you stay on your feet
When on every street
It's 'trick or treat'
And tonight its 'trick'
'Welcome back to town'
I should lie down
Everything's brown
And uh oh
I feel sick
Where is he?
Getting dizzy
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
How we gonna pay
Last year's rent
The music ignites the night with passionate fire
The narration crackles and pops with incendiary wit
Zoom in as they burn the past to the ground
And feel the heat of the future's glow
How do you leave the past behind
When it keep finding ways to get to your heart
It reaches way down deep and tears you inside out
'Til you're torn apart
Rent
How can you connect in an age
Where strangers, landlords, lovers
Your own blood cells betray
What binds the fabric together
When the raging, shifting winds of change
Keep ripping away
Draw a line in the sand
And then make a stand
Use your camera to spar
Use your guitar
When they act tough
You call their bluff
We're not gonna pay
We're not gonna pay
We're not gonna pay
Last year's rent
This year's rent
Next year's rent
Rent rent rent rent rent
We're not gonna pay rent
'Cause everything is rent
The song "Rent" is the title song from the Broadway musical of the same name by Jonathan Larson. The song is sung by the characters Mark and Roger after receiving an eviction notice, reflecting on their current situation while trying to figure out how to pay their rent. The lyrics delve into the struggles of trying to document real life when reality is becoming more like fiction, and how difficult it is to create something meaningful when feeling hopeless and powerless. The song's chorus continues to repeat the phrase "how we gonna pay last year's rent" and "we're not gonna pay rent", as the characters protest against the system that has put them in this situation.
Throughout the song, Mark and Roger discuss their struggles with creating art in a world that doesn't value it, and trying to find ways to stay afloat when faced with eviction and financial crisis. They feel lost and disconnected in a world that keeps changing, where even their own bodies seem to betray them. However, they find solace in connecting with their community and standing up against those in power, using their cameras and guitars to fight back.
The song's emotional lyrics and intense melody perfectly capture the struggles of young artists trying to make it in a harsh world, and has become an anthem for those fighting against societal expectations and financial struggles.
Line by Line Meaning
How do you document real life
How do you accurately depict the reality of life
When real life's getting more
As life becomes increasingly difficult
Like fiction each day
It seems like something out of a work of fiction
Headlines, bread lines
Amidst the poverty, both the news and food are scarce
Blow my mind
Overwhelm me
And now this deadline
The deadline for eviction
"Eviction or pay"
Either we pay or we lose our place
Rent
The price of our living space
How do you write a song
How do you create art
When the chords sound wrong
When what was once beautiful now sounds off
Though they once sounded right and rare
Even if it was once perfect and unique
When the notes are sour
When it no longer sounds pleasing
Where is the power
Where has the ability to move people gone
You once had to ignite the air
That it once had to inspire people
We're hungry and frozen
We're struggling to meet basic needs
Some life that we've chosen
This is the life we find ourselves in
How we gonna pay
How will we afford it
Last year's rent
The rent from last year that we haven't paid
How do you start a fire
How do you make a change
When there's nothing to burn
When there's no obvious solution
And it feels like something's stuck in your flue
There's something blocking progress
How can you generate heat
How can you create passion
When you can't feel your feet
When you're crippled by hardship
And they're turning blue
When it feels like you're dying
You light up a mean blaze
You find creativity in adversity
With posters
By expressing art
And screenplays
And even with stories
The music ignites the night with passionate fire
The music sparks passion
The narration crackles and pops with incendiary wit
The story is told with humor and zeal
Zoom in as they burn the past to the ground
As they destroy what came before to move forward
And feel the heat of the future's glow
And embrace what's yet to come
How do you leave the past behind
How do you move past trauma
When it keep finding ways to get to your heart
When it keeps haunting you
It reaches way down deep and tears you inside out
It's a pain that cuts deep
'Til you're torn apart
Until you can't go on
How can you connect in an age
In modern times how can you form meaningful relationships
Where strangers, landlords, lovers
In a society where everyone is disconnected
Your own blood cells betray
Even your own body can't be trusted
What binds the fabric together
What keeps society from falling apart
When the raging, shifting winds of change
When change is constant and overwhelming
Keep ripping away
When what we rely on is constantly being taken away
Draw a line in the sand
Create boundaries and take a stand
And then make a stand
And stick to it, even if it's difficult
Use your camera to spar
Use art to express dissent
Use your guitar
And use creativity to fight back
When they act tough
When people try to intimidate us
You call their bluff
We don't back down
We're not gonna pay
We refuse to comply
Rent rent rent rent rent
Rent is the source of all our pain
We're not gonna pay rent
We won't put up with it anymore
'Cause everything is rent
We can't escape our financial burden
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JONATHAN D. LARSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@behshadmohebali6234
"But he worked so hard for it. You don't know how hard he worked." Even knowing what happened to him, this part was a gut punch I didn't expect.
@stephanie3848
I think I saw this back when it aired, I was 14 then. I remember that part 😞
@coll4455
This 😢
@caitlinbelforti870
The set design on tick tick boom was brilliant. They got everything right about his apartment.
@meatwadsprlte
Yeah apparently he recorded his whole apartment for insurance purposes.
@lespangen
@Bill Smithwick DDS Yes and his sister gave LMM the video which they used for the apartment design😬
@janetnjau397
Jonathan Larsons story is easily one of the worst stories I’ve ever heard. I only found out today and my blood is boiling. As an artist I would rather die a century before my work is valued, than to die only a few hours before the peak of my career. He worked sooo hard for so long then won every single award he could’ve dreamed of but post-humously. What kind of sick destiny is that? 😓
@lilymae7516
See it this way. Johnathan worked for his dreams to have a musical produced, and it happened. His dreams came true, probably never would have expected all the attention tho. Also, he apparently was self aware about his mortality, it is why he worked hard. A lot of successful people get careers handed to them so it makes sense that someone who didn't have things get handed to them takes way longer.
@paulwillard81
What kind of stupidly sick mindset thinks the life he led was a "sick destiny"?? While Larson's life ending the way it did was certainly tragic and heartbreaking — I'm not sure throwing words like "blood boiling" and "sick destiny" are fitting for his life.
@redadamearth
It's not like he knew it happened. He basically passed out, so he wasn't aware of what happened. It's only his friends and the world who knew the tragic coincidence of what actually occurred. He didn't know that he died. His life ended in JOY, because he knew it was going to premiere that night. That's all he knew.