As a 17 year old out of high school, Keaton started thinking about college. He decided on The Evergreen State College, located in Olympia, Washington. The area, which has become known as a fertile breeding ground for music and art, proved perfect to set in motion his initiation into the immense world of music. It was there that Keaton started writing songs. He dove in headfirst, taking on courses ranging from 20th century classical composition to Indonesian gamelan music to jazz and quite a lot in between. Keaton's years at Evergreen not only introduced him to diverse global music but also taught him to incorporate everything into his own sensibilities. Major record labels have accused Keaton of being too diverse to contain.
After an early graduation, it was back to Los Angeles, playing music with old friends like Tre Hardson (of The Pharcyde) and new ones like singer N'Dea Davenport (of the Brand New Heavies), Kim Hill (of the Black Eyed Peas), underground hip-hop legend Medusa and appearing on Jay Leno's TONIGHT SHOW with hip-hop icon Snoop Dogg.
Before Keaton was 21 years old he was asked to compose music for the motion picture Mercy Streets. Labels began to investigate and eventually he landed a deal with Maverick Records. Keaton released a five-song EP with Maverick entitled "Currently". The EP displays a taste of bluesy, rootsy, guitar-driven songs & ballads, with stylish arrangements that showcase his rich, often spooky melodies. Indeed, the disc's delicate, down-home title track is in rotation at radio stations around America. Recently reaching ..1 on the charts of Tucson, AZ's KWMT 92.9 The Mountain.
One of the first to play Keaton's music was influential LA public radio station KCRW, which afforded him the opportunity in early 2005 to play the Universal Amphitheatre supporting Coldplay. Keaton's music has also been featured on LA's ..1 mid-day radio show, KLSX 97.1, "Heidi, Frosty and Frank". Here is where leaks have started of some of the tracks on Keaton's album that were produced by well known producing team, The Matrix. The timing for Keaton's meeting (through a mutual friend) with the Matrix really worked for both. Keaton's songs were thought of as being too alternatively structured to be radio friendly, though many agreed there was something there. The Matrix, just off Avril Lavigne's COMPLICATED, were seeking something to ground them, and reveal the soul in their pop music. The team loved every second of working together, and ended up with an album that was completed just in time for the record label to conclude changes that made releasing such a "big album" impossible. Hence, a move to the beautiful freedom and diversity of CD Baby.
Keaton participated in the 2005 Sundance Film Festival as a part of BMI's annual showcase. Sharing the bill with Vanessa Carlton, Minnie Driver, Joe Firstman and Ben Gibbard (Death Cab For Cutie and The Postal Service). Keaton is no stranger to the world of film and television. It's kind of the family business. Keaton's little stepsister, Emma Roberts, costars with JoJo in the just completed AQUAMARINE. Emma has an album coming out, featuring songs from her television series UNFABULOUS. Keaton's sister, Morgan Simons, is a culinary artist who tries to feed actresses healthfully enough such that they will not need to name their babies after food!
Keaton's grandfather, Don Garrett, has been publicist to such world renowned sensations as everything from The Supremes to "The Flintstones". Another of Keaton's grandfathers, screenwriter David Rayfiel, wrote such loved films as "Three Days of the Condor" & "Round Midnight", to name a few. Keaton's grandmother, Lila Garrett (whom Keaton immortalized in the song "Joseph" on which Keaton took the opportunity to play all the instruments including drums, bass, piano, guitar and vocals) has credits and Emmy awards as writer/ producer/ director on pretty much every situation comedy from the 1960s to the 2000s. Keaton and his father, Jimmy Simons, had a chance recently to work together when Keaton appeared on Fox Televisions' MALCOLM IN THE MIDDLE, which Jimmy produces and sometimes directs. Keaton was cast by his episode's director, Bryan Cranston, who also plays "Hal" on the series. Keaton's mother, Eliza Roberts, has made a name for herself as a Hollywood Jane of all trades. From actress to casting director, manager to writer. In her early 20s she became producer of the pre-MTV phenomenon "Don Kirshner's Rock Concert". With baby Keaton in tow, Eliza's show hosted live performances from such acts as Chuck Berry, James Brown, The Brothers Johnson, Donna Summers, Abba, Natalie Cole, and featured early comedy by David Letterman, Andy Kaufman, Michael Keaton and almost Robin Williams - but no one could quite figure out what his act was.
Beyond MALCOLM, like many musicians today, Keaton has crossed over into the world of acting, having performed a heart-stopping rendition of Bob Dylan's "Masters of War" on NBC's acclaimed "American Dreams". Keaton will also be seen starring in Henry Jaglom's upcoming feature film, "Hollywood Dreams" (Lots of "dreams" needed to sort through some of the harsh realities of our world these days, it would seem). Keaton's earliest work features his mother, Eliza (Garrett), three months pregnant with him, when she appeared as "Brunella, at the desk" in NATIONAL LAMPOON'S ANIMAL HOUSE.
Nobody Knows
Keaton Simons Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That's my wake-up call
I'm slowly falling back to sleep
Just in time
for a mirror full of dreams
to wash me clean
I reflect upon
this burning secret
Once again
we tell our friends
there's nothing going on
Sure, sure, honey
Haven't seen you around
That's right
I've heard you've been
out of town
With some guy
who looks
a lot like me
Can't you see that
Nobody knows you
like I do
We can let them wonder
Everyone thinks
they know the truth
People never understand
Better we lie
and play it cool
So when I see you
It's just
Sure, sure, honey, honey
We both know
That this is just pretend
La la
Wink
That's our signal
I leave by the back door
Know that we're gonna' meet
in an hour
So prepare your alibi
You've got things to do
Stayin' with a friend tonight
As for me
Well I say
You can call me friend
That's alright
Sure, sure, honey
Guess I'll see you around
Meanwhile
You'll be off getting down
With some guy who looks
a lot like me
Can't you see that
I know every inch of you
But I will barely
speak to you tonight
That's just how it is gotta be
Everybody wants you
But you're coming home with me
Nobody knows you
like I do
We can let them wonder
Everyone thinks
they know the truth
People never understand
Better we lie
and play it cool
So when I see you
It's just
Sure, sure, honey, honey
Sure, sure
Honey, honey
Nobody knows you
like I do
We can let them wonder
Everyone thinks
they know the truth
People never understand
Better we lie
and play it cool
So when I see you
It's just
Sure, sure, honey, honey
We both know
That this is just pretend
The lyrics of Keaton Simons's Nobody Knows tell the story of a secret love affair between two people who are pretending to be just friends. They are hiding their true feelings and denying their attraction to each other in front of their friends who assume they are not together. The song opens with the singer waking up and reflecting on their secret, their "burning secret" that they share with their lover. They then proceed to meet up secretly, with a preplanned alibi and signal, to spend time together. In the chorus, they acknowledge that nobody knows their secrets and feelings for each other, apart from them. They are playing it cool and lying to their friends about their true feelings to avoid judgment and misunderstanding.
The song is about the fear of vulnerability and the importance of secrecy as a form of protection. The singer knows every inch of their lover, but they cannot openly express their feelings for fear of rejection or judgment. The song shows the internal struggle of hiding true feelings from the world, pretending to be just friends, yet being in love with someone secretly. The singer and their lover are aware that their secret is a facade, and this is just pretend.
Line by Line Meaning
Blink
The start of his day
That's my wake-up call
The moment when he wakes up
I'm slowly falling back to sleep
He's not fully awake yet
Just in time for a mirror full of dreams to wash me clean
He's daydreaming and reminiscing about their relationship
I reflect upon this burning secret that we keep
He thinks about their hidden affair
Once again we tell our friends there's nothing going on
They have to keep their affair secret from their friends
Sure, sure, honey. Haven't seen you around
He covers up any suspicion of their secret relationship
That's right. I've heard you've been out of town.
He's aware of her whereabouts and follows her movements
With some guy who looks a lot like me. Can't you see that?
He's jealous of her spending time with someone else who looks similar to him
Nobody knows you like I do. We can let them wonder.
He understands her true personality and they should keep their relationship a mystery
Everyone thinks they know the truth. People never understand. Better we lie and play it cool.
People would not accept their affair and they have to lie and pretend to be friends in public
So when I see you, it's just, sure, sure, honey, honey.
When they meet in person, they have to keep up their pretense
Wink. That's our signal.
They have a signal to communicate in public
I leave by the back door. Know that we're gonna' meet in an hour.
He'll leave discreetly and they'll meet up later
So prepare your alibi. You've got things to do. Stayin' with a friend tonight.
She'll make an excuse to be with him tonight and she'll say she's with a friend
As for me, well I say, you can call me friend. That's alright. Sure, sure, honey. Guess I'll see you around.
He'll tell others she's his friend and dismisses any suspicion of their relationship
Meanwhile, you'll be off getting down with some guy who looks a lot like me. Can't you see that?
He's still jealous of her spending time with someone else who looks like him
I know every inch of you. But I will barely speak to you tonight. That's just how it is gotta be. Everybody wants you. But you're coming home with me.
He knows her well but they can't reveal their relationship in public. He's possessive and wants her for himself
We both know that this is just pretend.
They both know they can't reveal their true feelings to anyone else
Contributed by Samantha V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.