For La La Land, Hurwitz won two Academy Awards, Best Original Score and Best Original Song (for "City of Stars"), as well as the Golden Globe Awards for Best Original Score and Best Original Song and the BAFTA Award for Best Film Music. He won two more Golden Globes for Best Original Score for First Man and Babylon.
Hurwitz is the son of Gail (née Halabe), a professional ballet dancer turned registered nurse, and Ken Hurwitz, a writer. He is of Jewish heritage (from Russia, Poland, Damascus in Syria, and Beirut in Lebanon). His family moved to Wisconsin in 1998, where he attended Nicolet High School.
Hurwitz attended Harvard University, where he was roommates with director Damien Chazelle.[ They collaborated on a student film that would become Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench, which was released in 2009. While in school, Hurwitz was a member of the Harvard Lampoon and was an original member of the indie-pop band Chester French with Chazelle.
After college, Hurwitz and Chazelle moved to Los Angeles, where Hurwitz wrote comedy for the sitcom The League and one episode of the animated comedy TV series The Simpsons. Thanks to the success of Guy and Madeline, they were able to obtain financing for their next collaboration, the 2014 film Whiplash – with Hurwitz scoring the film and Chazelle writing and directing. Hurwitz also scored Chazelle's 2016 film La La Land, for which Chazelle won the Oscar for Best Director, and Hurwitz won two Oscars for Best Original Score and Best Original Song. Hurwitz, Pasek, and Paul will return as songwriters for the upcoming stage musical adaptation of the film, directed by Bartlett Sher from a book by Ayad Akhtar and Matthew Decker, with Marc Platt and Lionsgate returning to produce.
City Of Stars / May Finally Come True
Justin Hurwitz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Are you shining just for me?
City of stars
There's so much that I can't see
Who knows?
I felt it from the first embrace I shared with you
That now our dreams may finally come true
Just one thing everybody wants
There in the bars
And through the smokescreen of the crowded restaurants
It's love
Yes, all we're looking for is love from someone else
A rush
A glance
A touch
A dance
A look in somebody's eyes
To light up the skies
To open the world and send it reeling
A voice that says, I'll be here
And you'll be alright
I don't care if I know
Just where I will go
'Cause all that I need's this crazy feeling
A rat-tat-tat on my heart
Think I want it to stay
City of stars
Are you shining just for me?
City of stars
You never shined so brightly
The song "City of Stars/May Finally Come True" tells a story about a couple who is starting to fall in love in Los Angeles, the city of stars. The first verse "City of stars, are you shining just for me? There's so much that I can't see" shows the uncertainty of the singer in whether the universe is favouring them. The following lines "I felt it from the first embrace I shared with you, that now our dreams may finally come true" illustrates their new-found hope of being able to achieve something meaningful together, sparked by their connection and chemistry.
The second verse portrays the couple's search for love and their desire to find someone who loves them back. "Just one thing everybody wants, there in the bars and through the smokescreen of the crowded restaurants, it's love. Yes, all we're looking for is love from someone else." The succeeding lines, "A rush, a glance, a touch, a dance, a look in somebody's eyes, to light up the skies, to open the world and send it reeling, a voice that says, I'll be here and you'll be alright" describe how the couple found all these traits and characteristics in each other, which leads them to think that their dreams will finally come true.
Line by Line Meaning
City of stars
Referring to Los Angeles, the city full of actors, artists, and dreamers.
Are you shining just for me?
Asking if the city's vibrant energy and opportunities are meant specifically for the singer.
There's so much that I can't see
Acknowledging that there's a lot about the city and its potential that the singer doesn't yet understand.
Who knows?
Expressing uncertainty about what the future holds.
I felt it from the first embrace I shared with you
Recalling a moment of connection with someone that may lead to their dreams coming true.
That now our dreams may finally come true
Hopeful that this connection could lead to achieving their dreams in the city.
Just one thing everybody wants
Stating that nearly everyone in the city is searching for the same thing.
There in the bars
One of the many places people go to search for love and connection.
And through the smokescreen of the crowded restaurants
Describing the atmosphere of a busy city with lots of distractions and people to sift through.
It's love
Love is the thing that people are seeking, in all its various forms.
Yes, all we're looking for is love from someone else
Confirming that finding a connection with someone is a universal need.
A rush
A sudden and intense feeling of excitement or adrenaline.
A glance
A quick and fleeting look at someone or something.
A touch
A physical connection with someone, often with romantic connotations.
A dance
A way of connecting and moving together with someone else.
A look in somebody's eyes
The moment of recognition and connection that can happen when someone looks into another's eyes.
To light up the skies
Imagining that this moment of connection would be powerful enough to change the artist's whole perspective.
To open the world and send it reeling
Suggesting that this moment could have a ripple effect, affecting the way the singer sees and interacts with the whole world.
A voice that says, I'll be here
A reassurance from someone else that they will be a steady presence in the singer's life.
And you'll be alright
Implying that the artist may need this reassurance in order to feel secure and safe in their dreams and ambitions.
I don't care if I know
Rejecting the need for certainty and control over the future.
Just where I will go
Being uncertain about where the future will lead, but willing to explore and find out.
'Cause all that I need's this crazy feeling
Acknowledging that love and connection can feel overwhelming and intense, and yet it's still what the singer needs to feel fulfilled.
A rat-tat-tat on my heart
Describing the sound and feeling of excitement and adrenaline that can occur when the artist is near the person they're drawn to.
Think I want it to stay
Expressing a desire to hold onto this feeling of hope and possibility.
You never shined so brightly
Observing that the city, and all its potential, has never seemed so bright and full of possibility before.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Justin Hurwitz, Benj Pasek, Justin Noble Paul
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind