In Between
Kelsea Ballerini Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
In between an apartment and a frontporch swing
In between cheap and fancy a guitar and a Grammy
In between reckless and responsibility
Sometimes I'm my mother's daughter, sometimes I'm her friend
Sometimes I play grown up and sometimes I play pretend
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed all curves
Dumb enough to think I know it all
Smart enough to know I don't
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Old enough to know I won't
In between
In between beer and basement
And Napa Valley vacation
In between hometown and a neon city
In between underestimated and overexpectated
Who I was and who I'm gonna be
Sometimes I'm my mother's daughter, sometimes I'm her friend
Sometimes I play grown up and sometimes I play pretend
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed all ribbons and all curves
And sometimes I just wanna scream, “I'm not a little girl“
Dumb enough to think I know it all
Smart enough to know I don't
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Old enough to know I won't
I know I won't
I'm half head up in the clouds, half feet down on the ground
'Cause it ain't that simple
As an adult sittin' on that page when they say, “Act your age“
But you're stuck there in the middle
Sometimes I'm my mother's daughter, sometimes I'm her friend
Sometimes I play grown up and sometimes I play pretend
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed all ribbons and all curves
And sometimes I just wanna scream “I'm not a little girl!“
Dumb enough to think I know it all
Smart enough to know I don't
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Old enough to know I won't
In the in between
Yeah
In the in between
hey sweetpea it's mama
Just wanna let you know that I love you
Thinkin' about you, missin' you while I'm on the road
Can't wait to see you when I get back
The song "In Between" by Kelsea Ballerini is a relatable anthem for those who feel stuck in between stages of their life. The opening lines, "In between just a flame and a ring, in between an apartment and a front porch swing", exemplify the limbo the singer is in, stuck somewhere between youth and adulthood. The lyrics continue to list a variety of in-between moments, such as being "in between reckless and responsibility", "in between underestimated and overexpected", and "in between hometown and a neon city".
The chorus of the song emphasizes the conflicting emotions that come with these in-between moments. The singer sometimes feels like a grown-up and sometimes like a child playing pretend. She sometimes feels like a princess and sometimes wants to scream that she's not a little girl. The song ends with a reassuring voicemail from the singer's mother, reminding her that she is loved and missed.
Line by Line Meaning
In between just a flame and a ring
Caught in between the excitement of a relationship and the seriousness of marriage
In between an apartment and a frontporch swing
Caught between the independence of living alone and the comfort of a family home
In between cheap and fancy a guitar and a Grammy
Torn between humble beginnings and the glamour of success
In between reckless and responsibility
Struggling to balance carefree fun with mature decisions
Sometimes I'm my mother's daughter, sometimes I'm her friend
At times I rely on my mother for guidance, other times we're equals
Sometimes I play grown up and sometimes I play pretend
Occasionally I take responsibility maturely, other times I act immature
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed all curves
Sometimes I like to feel glamorous and show off my feminine figure
And sometimes I just wanna scream “I'm not a little girl!“
Occasionally I feel unjustly judged for being young and inexperienced
Dumb enough to think I know it all
Naively confident in my understanding of the world
Smart enough to know I don't
Realizing that there's much more I don't know than I do
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Having a sense of invincibility and that there's always time
Old enough to know I won't
Growing wise enough to understand that life is finite
In between beer and basement
Caught between youthful indulgences and the responsibilities of owning a home
And Napa Valley vacation
Caught between the desire to relax and play and the need to work
In between hometown and a neon city
Torn between the comfort of familiarity and the excitement of the unknown
In between underestimated and overexpectated
Caught between the opposing pressures of low and high expectations
Who I was and who I'm gonna be
At a crossroads of leaving the past behind and creating a new future
I'm half head up in the clouds, half feet down on the ground
Feeling suspended between lofty dreams and the practicalities of reality
Cause it ain't that simple
Recognizing that the uncertainty of the future is complex and not easy to navigate
As an adult sittin' on that page when they say, “Act your age“
Being told to be mature and responsible, despite still feeling like a child inside
But you're stuck there in the middle
Feeling trapped in this in-between stage of life
hey sweetpea it's mama Just wanna let you know that I love you Thinkin' about you, missin' you while I'm on the road Can't wait to see you when I get back
A caring message from her mother expressing love, missing her, and looking forward to being reunited
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Round Hill Music Big Loud Songs, AUDIAM, INC
Written by: Jimmy Robbins, Kelsea Ballerini, Shane L McAnally
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ran jeet
Sometimes, I'm my mother's daughter
Sometimes, I'm her friend
Sometimes, I play grown up
And sometimes, I play pretend
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed up in ribbons and all curls
And sometimes I just wanna scream "I'm not a little girl"
I've done enough to think I know it all
Smart enough to know I don't
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Old enough to know I won't
- love this lyrics- :)
Lorenzo Barrios
In between, just a fling, in the rain
In between, in apartment and a front porch swing
In between, cheap and fancy, a guitar and a Grammy
In between, reckless and responsibility
Sometimes, I'm my mother's daughter
Sometimes, I'm her friend
Sometimes, I play grown up
And sometimes, I play pretend
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed up in ribbons and all curls
And sometimes I just wanna scream "I'm not a little girl"
I've done enough to think I know it all
Smart enough to know I don't
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Old enough to know I won't
(In between)
In between beer and a basement
In a Alp, a valley, vacation
In between, home, town and a neon city
In between, underestimated and overexpectated
Who I was and who I'm gonna be
Sometimes, I'm my mother's daughter
Sometimes, I'm her friend
Sometimes, I play grown up
And sometimes, I play pretend
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed up in ribbons and all curls
And sometimes I just wanna scream "I'm not a little girl"
I've done enough to think I know it all
Smart enough to know I don't
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Old enough to know I won't
I know I won't
I'm half head up in the clouds
Half feet down on the ground
'Cause it ain't that simple
As a number, sitting on a page
When they say "act your age"
But you're stuck there in the middle
Sometimes, I'm my mother's daughter
Sometimes, I'm her friend
Sometimes, I play grown up
And sometimes, I play pretend
Sometimes I'm a princess dressed up in ribbons and all curls
And sometimes I just wanna scream "I'm not a little girl"
I've done enough to think I know it all
Smart enough to know I don't
Young enough to think I'll live forever
Old enough to know I won't
In the end, in between
In the end, in between
Reagan Newsome
The chorus is so relatable. This is the second song of kelsea's where I've cried. I may be late to hearing this song, but I just wanna say this is very relatable to probably every teen because we have those moments all the time. Thank you kelsea
Bhawna03
Omg does this girl even have a bad song?? I just discovered her and all the songs I've heard so far are AMAZING!
Adriana Avila
Me too! Almost a year later. Better late than never. I'm binge listening to her songs.
Megan B.
I'm not all that crazy about her song "End of the World." It doesn't mean it's a bad song. I just don't like it all that much. Too slow.
Lisa Munson
She kicked off her career in wausau wis 2014. That was her first concert.
Shawn McBride
@Megan B. Same here
Lilly Lay
I feel like this song kind of describes what it's like to be a teen 💖
booboobaba da great
This song reminds me of Gracie Shook
Megan B.
I think this song describes twenty-somethings more accurately than it does teens. In particular this lyric "young enough to think I'll live forever, old enough to know I won't." With a few mature exceptions, I don't see the majority of teens fully comprehending their own mortality.
I'm not talking about those emo teens. I'm talking about the ones who might think they know their own mortality, but then go and throw it away doing all that YOLO stuff we do in our teens.
Yuuki no Yuki
@Megan B. Also, "in between an apartment and a front porch swing" is almost exclusively 20-somethings. A handful of teens may have an apartment when they're 18/19 but only the extreme outliers would be considering a house.