Early public performances by Kimbra included singing at JBC (now the dive bar Nivara Lounge) in Hamilton at age 9, the Waikato Times Gold Cup race meeting in 2000 as a 10-year-old, and singing the national anthem at age 12 before 27,000 people at the Auckland vs Waikato NPC rugby final. In 2007, after winning the Juice TV award for best breakthrough music video for her second single "Simply on My Lips", she came to the attention of ex-Independient Records boss Mark Richardson (Jamiroquai, Paula Abdul) and his newly-formed management company and independent label Forum 5 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Before her debut album, Kimbra released 2 singles: 'Simply On My Lips' and 'Deep For You'.
Kimbra's debut album, Vows was released in 2011. Three singles have been released from this album - 'Cameo Lover', 'Settle Down', 'Good Intent'. According to the Settle Down Songfacts, Vows spans five years of Kimbra's life from age 17 to 22. and explores love, identity and coming of age.
Kimbra also collaborated with Australian artist Gotye for the single 'Somebody That I Used To Know ' in 2011. This song has peaked on the charts in The USA, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium and The Netherlands at #1.
A significantly reworked version of her debut album was released in the U.S. in May of 2012. At the end of that year Kimbra triumphed in five categories at the New Zealand Music Awards, most notably Best Female Solo Artist and Best Pop Album. She also continued to receive plaudits for her Gotye collaboration well into 2013, among them the 2012 Grammy for Record of the Year.
Along with touring with Gotye and making festival appearances, including a spot at Brazil's Rock in Rio festival, Kimbra began work on her second album, The Golden Echo. She returned to the studio with producer Rich Costey and a host of collaborators including Bilal, Van Dyke Parks, Muse's Matt Bellamy, the Mars Volta's Omar A. Rodriguez-Lopez, and Silverchair's Daniel Johns, who co-wrote some of the album's songs. Singles such as the genre-hopping "'90s Music" and the smooth disco-funk homage "Miracle" hinted at The Golden Echo's eclecticism ahead of its August 2014 release.
Kimbra reunited with Bilal in 2015, appearing on his album In Another Life, and debuted her own single "Sweet Relief" in 2016. The 2017 single "Everybody Knows" offered the first taste of her third album Primal Heart. Featuring songs co-written and co-produced by Kimbra -- as well as collaborations with John Congleton and Skrillex -- Primal Heart appeared in April 2018.
As You Are
Kimbra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I won't give it back to you
I won't give that part again
I won't love another you
'Cause honey that eyeglass got me thinkin'
You ain't no friend of mine
And I'm movin' so fast that you got me thinkin'
Honey I wanna find somewhere sacred
Away from your flashin' lights
Honey I was yours in the dark of the night
Come as you are
Come let me take a picture
Come as you are
I won't give it back again
More that I'm givin', the more you take
Feelin' forced into the intimate
With every move I make into your frame
Come on, take anything you like
Come on, take anything you like
Come on, take anything you like
Come on, take anything you like
'Cause honey that eyeglass got me thinkin'
You ain't no friend of mine
We were movin' so fast and the sand was sinkin'
Why not keep chasin' time?
Honey I wanna feel something sacred
Away from your flashin' lights
Honey I was yours in the dark of the night
Come as you are
Come let me take a picture
Come as you are
Come inside, a little to the right
Get comfortable, you're a natural
Come inside, it'll be alright
Love comes at a cost, nothing's ever lost
Just another paradox
And dark was never just for us
Takin' all the falls, try and make it last
But it's too, my love shall pass
The dark was never just for us
And it all ends the same
'Cause in time, everything must change
Take another fast, try to make it last if you want to
But in time, everything must go
In the song “As You Are” by Kimbra, the singer addresses a former love who has hurt her before. She declares that she won't be giving into the relationship again, for fear of being hurt once more. Regardless of how much she has given, she has received nothing in return, and declares she won't be loving another person like him. The reference to the eyeglass signifies how it has allowed her to see things more clearly, making her realize that he is not a true friend to her. The singer is in a hurry to move on from the past, therefore, doesn’t want to waste time anymore, and urges him to let her find somewhere “sacred,” somewhere away from the relationship’s former flashy lifestyle.
The chorus invites her ex-lover to “come as he is,” and her to take a picture to keep the memory of him. It is almost as if she is trying to end things on a good note, despite the hurt he has caused her. The bridge of the song talks about how love comes at a price but it's never lost, creating the paradox of something that is both valuable and can never be really owned. It is implied that there was a period when their love was working, but it is now over, and everything must change. She ends the song by hinting that they should take what they can get, "but in time, everything must go."
Line by Line Meaning
I won't give it back again
I will not return to the relationship with you
I won't give it back to you
I will not return the love you gave me
I won't give that part again
I refuse to give myself completely to you again
I won't love another you
I cannot bring myself to love someone else like I loved you
'Cause honey that eyeglass got me thinkin'
Because your actions made me realize something
You ain't no friend of mine
You are not my friend
And I'm movin' so fast that you got me thinkin'
I am moving on quickly
Why not keep chasin' time?
Why not keep moving forward?
Honey I wanna find somewhere sacred
I want to find a place that is meaningful to me
Away from your flashin' lights
Away from the distractions you caused me
Honey I was yours in the dark of the night
I belonged to you when I was vulnerable and alone
Come as you are
Be yourself when you come to me
Come let me take a picture
Let me capture a moment with you
I won't give it back again
I refuse to repeat the past
More that I'm givin', the more you take
The more I give, the more you take advantage of me
Feelin' forced into the intimate
Feeling like I have to be intimate with you
With every move I make into your frame
With every action I take to please you
Come on, take anything you like
Take what you want from me
'Cause honey that eyeglass got me thinkin'
Because your actions made me realize something
We were movin' so fast and the sand was sinkin'
We were moving quickly and it felt like time was running out
Honey I wanna feel something sacred
I want to feel connected to something meaningful
Come inside, a little to the right
Move this way to get a better shot
Get comfortable, you're a natural
Relax, you're good at this
Come inside, it'll be alright
Come closer, everything will be okay
Love comes at a cost, nothing's ever lost
Love is a sacrifice, but nothing is truly lost
Just another paradox
A confusing and contradictory situation
And dark was never just for us
Our darkness is not unique
Takin' all the falls, try and make it last
Taking all the risks to make the relationship work
But it's too, my love shall pass
But it won't last, my love will fade
And it all ends the same
In the end, everything comes to a close
'Cause in time, everything must change
Because everything changes with time
Take another fast, try to make it last if you want to
Take another chance, and try to make it last if you want to
But in time, everything must go
But eventually, everything ends
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DANIEL JOHNS, KIMBRA JOHNSON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Miranda TM
There's something so special about her live performances. She's not just capturing an emotion, she's actively feeling it as she's singing. There's all these little complexities on her face, some that linger, and some as she's reaching for a note or winding down, and it's so clearly felt, that at some points in here it's heartbreaking just as it is beautiful. Just tremendous. She's one for the ages, a truly unique soul.
Jessica Zumeta
I taotally agree. Ive always like her music but I went to her concert last month and seeing her perform it live added so much depth and expression to each song.
Kai Taglia
Rishon Marrell exactly... i have no words
ColeFish
Rishon Marrell I wholeheartedly agree.
Jack Pandalord
Well said
She's a natural too, man!!! <3
Mladen Vujovic
She's being real.
Luis Ramírez Rivera
"When you create a place with someone that's sacred and that you think is just shared between you two, if that is then taken away from you or opened up in a way that you didn't expect, you start to put up walls for fear that it will happen again"
Soliloquy Love
This song hurts my heart, but I can't stop listening.
David Daspit
Me too!
Violet R.
I never met an artist explain her emotions through music as well as her. She is one of my inspirations and love her voice. Although it makes me depressed and emotional listening to this song. I guess it's because of the amount of emotion and feeling put into the song.