In 1996, she released her first album, Tidy. It was received very well for an indepenent artist, and received critical acclaim from some reviewers for women's magazines, such as Inga Muscio for Wig Magazine. "Kinnie is going to be a huge star. Because she is so emotionally real, vulnerable, articulate, talented, and loving--things many people fear greatly in themselves, and thus, look for in others--people are going to glorify her in an insanely unrealistic way. "
She was soon after courted by Mercury Records, and signed a deal. She proceeded to tour for two years promoting Tidy, mainly in Canada, but also in the United States and Europe, with her band, handsome boyz 3. Her shows definitely got peoples' attention. She is very spontaneous, often chatting and joking with the crowd, and encouraging them to participate. Her early shows became known after she had audience members jumping up on stage and talking about their sex lives for a free t-shirt.
She also prefers to walk around the audience when possible, instead of being on stage, having been described as a caged animal when stuck up there. "I will devise a way of playing guitar in the crowd," she once said.
During her touring, she worked in five shows for the 1997 Lilith Fair. The next year, her touring took the form of the Scrappy Bitch Tour, done with Veda Hill and Oh Susanna.
Finally, she started to work on her second album. She finished the album during a time of internal shake-ups and changes in her label. Mercury records became Island/Def Jam Records, but there was still no sign of them publishing her album. In the meantime, she opened two Canadian shows for Alanis Morissette.
In 2000, she grew tired of the situation, and asked them to let her go. They did just that, but refused her the rights to her new album, Mending, instead keeping it for themseves. She proceeded to head back to Violet Inch, and recorded a third album, Tune-Up, which released in 2000, and a fourth, Sun Again, released in 2003.
Her sound has been described as a merging of rock, hip-hop, r&b, pop, and alternative. Kinnie has given it the name "Chunkhop". The songs are full of spoken word and rhyme, with with some strong bass tracks, more so in Tune-Up than in Tidy.
She's not all that excited about being a "personality", due to people knowing her music. "The state of music is very odd to me right now because it's all about the cult of personality. I try to be casual, but that becomes a look. No matter what choice you make, it's seen as cultivated."
la le la la
Kinnie Starr Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
La le la la, la la le la
You know I love you
Wasn't that hard to forgive you
You stood by me
Strong for a while
It was too hard to forget you
You stood by me
Tall for a while
La le la la, la la le la la
La le la la, la la le la
Oh, yeah, yeah
Oh, yeah
You know I love you, boy
It wasn't that hard to forgive you
We were just too much to be together
So I can't be with you
But you stood by me
And you were strong for a while
Yeah, you stood by me
And you were tall for a while
La le la la, la la le la la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
We woke up one morning
And found love was gone
Looked around for the sunshine
But she had moved on and on, oh
La le la la, la la le la la
La le la la, la la le la
La le la la, la la le la la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
You know I love you
Wasn't that hard to forgive you
You stood by me
Strong for a while
Yeah, I love you
It was too hard to forget you
You stood by me
Tall for a while
La le la la, la la le la la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
La le la la, la la le la
(Oh, I love you)
(Oh, oh, I love you)
Oh yeah, yeah
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Kinnie Starr's song La Le Lala is a testament to a love that once was, but ultimately couldn't last. The repetition of the nonsense syllables "la le la la, la la le la," serves as a simple and catchy hook that bookends each chorus, emphasizing the bittersweet nature of the song's message. The lyrics speak of forgiveness and strength, but also acknowledge the reality that some relationships are simply too intense to last. The singer loves the subject of the song, and forgives them easily, but they both knew deep down that they were "just too much to be together," and that their love had faded like the sun on a cloudy day.
The verses are filled with vivid imagery, such as the sun moving on and on, leaving behind a cold morning, and a love that has vanished. The lines "You stood by me / And you were strong for a while / Yeah, you stood by me / And you were tall for a while" suggest that the relationship was one that demanded a lot of the people involved, and that they were able to meet those demands for a time, but ultimately, it was unsustainable. The song is a mournful yet hopeful tribute to a love that was once strong, but ultimately couldn't withstand the test of time.
Line by Line Meaning
La le la la, la la le la la
Repeating the phrase several times to emphasize the timeless quality of love and the power of the melody
You know I love you
Expressing deep affection and devotion to the subject of the song
Wasn't that hard to forgive you
Referring to a past conflict but indicating a willingness to move on and let go of the hurt
You stood by me
Acknowledging the subject's loyalty in a difficult time
Strong for a while
Implying that the support was temporary or that it wavered over time
Yeah, I love you
Reiterating the strength of the emotion
It was too hard to forget you
Contrasting forgiveness with the difficulty of moving on from the relationship
Tall for a while
Continuing the metaphor of strong support but again suggesting its impermanence
Oh, yeah, yeah
An interjection indicating agreement or emphasis
We were just too much to be together
Acknowledging incompatibility as the reason for separation
So I can't be with you
Asserting the finality of the decision to end the relationship
We woke up one morning
Switching to the past tense and introducing a memory of when things changed
And found love was gone
Expressing the suddenness of the end of the relationship
Looked around for the sunshine
Searching for something positive or hopeful in the aftermath
But she had moved on and on, oh
Personifying the idea of happiness and implying that recovery is slow and difficult
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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