She signed a record deal with Dreamworks Records in 1999 and began recording her debut album. This album was set for release in 2000, but it was delayed because Dreamworks wanted to test Carter's fan base before releasing the album in order to ensure its success. Her single, "Like Wow!" appeared on the Shrek soundtrack and received minor radio airplay. With this added exposure and popularity, Dreamworks announced the future release of the album. However, Dreamworks later cancelled the release, allegedly due to beliefs that Carter could not compete with pop performers at the time such as Britney Spears and Jessica Simpson. Her debut album was never released, but the whole album can be found online.
Carter started a small club tour in Canada in December 2005, and had a showcase in NYC on January 19, 2006, with hopes it would lead to a new record deal. The songs performed on this tour had her abandoning her bubblegum pop roots for a more mature, pop rock-oriented sound. Carter was co-writing her material with, among others, producer and High Holy Days guitarist Dave Thompson.
Carter decided in late 2006 to make a band out of her backup musicians, which went by the name The OtherHalf. Aside from Carter, The OtherHalf consisted of Mike Ashton, DJ Porter, Casey Clowater, Paul Davidson, and Dave Thompson. Carter was seen writing music and performing her own songs for her siblings on the family's reality show House of Carters.
Casey Clowater, Paul Davidson, and Dave Thompson left TOH in 2007 for unspecified reasons, and was replaced by Sean Smit and Kirk Harber in May 2007. Kirk Harber also left after one show in May 2007.
She passed away on January 31, 2012 at the age of 25. Cause of her death is not yet known.
They Don't Know
Leslie Carter Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh baby, I could leave you but I don't know how
And why should I be lonely every night
When I could be with you oh yes you, make it right
And I don't
Listen to the guys who say
That you're bad for me and I should turn you away
They've never heard of love
I get a feeling when I look at you
Wherever you go now I wanna be there too
They say we're crazy, but I just don't care
And if they keep on talking still they get no where
So I don't
Mind if they don't understand
When I look at you when you hold my hand
Cuz they don't know about us,
And they've never heard of love
Why should it matter to us if they don't approve
We should just take our chances while we've got nothing to lose
Baby
There's no need for living in the past
Now i've found good lovin' gonna make it last
I tell the others don't bother me
Cuz when they look at you they don't see what i see
No I don't
Listen to their wasted lines
Got my eyes wide open and i see the signs
Cuz they don't know about us
They've never heard of love
No I don't
Listen to their wasted lines
Got my eyes wide open and I see the signs
Cuz they don't know about us
They've never heard of love
Leslie Carter's song "They Don't Know" is about a relationship that is misunderstood by society. The singer has been with her partner for a long time, and although she could leave if she wanted to, she doesn't know how. She doesn't want to be lonely every night and instead prefers to be with her partner who makes everything right for her. She chooses not to listen to the guys who say that her partner is bad for her and that she should turn him away because they don't know about their love.
Even though society thinks they are crazy, the singer doesn't care as she wants to be with her partner wherever he goes. She doesn't mind if others don't understand as she finds comfort when her partner holds her hand. The singer acknowledges that society doesn't approve of their relationship but they should take their chances while they've got nothing to lose. She found good loving and she doesn't want to live in the past, she wants to make it last. When others look at her partner, they don't see what she sees, and she doesn't listen to their wasted lines as she sees the signs.
The song is generally about the singer and her partner's love and how they don't care about what society thinks. They have a real connection, and the singer is not afraid to take risks with this relationship. Her mind is made up about her partner, and she is not about to change her mind. It emphasizes the importance of not listening to people who think they know what's good for you when it comes to matters of the heart.
Line by Line Meaning
You've been around for such a long time now
We've been together for a while now.
Oh baby, I could leave you but I don't know how
I don't know how to leave you even though I may want to.
And why should I be lonely every night
I don't want to be lonely every night.
When I could be with you oh yes you, make it right
Being with you makes everything feel right.
And I don't
I don't do something that is being mentioned previously.
Listen to the guys who say
I don't listen to people who say.
That you're bad for me and I should turn you away
That you're not a good influence on me and I should end the relationship.
Cuz they don't know about us,
Because they don't understand our relationship.
They've never heard of love
They don't understand what love truly means.
I get a feeling when I look at you
I have a strong emotional connection when I look at you.
Wherever you go now I wanna be there too
I want to be with you wherever you go.
They say we're crazy, but I just don't care
People think we're crazy, but I don't care what they think.
And if they keep on talking still they get no where
If they keep talking, it won't change anything.
So I don't
I don't do something that is being mentioned previously.
Mind if they don't understand
I don't care if they don't understand.
When I look at you when you hold my hand
When I look at you and you hold my hand, I feel content.
Why should it matter to us if they don't approve
Why does it matter if they don't accept our relationship?
We should just take our chances while we've got nothing to lose
We should take a risk while we still have the chance to.
Baby
Affectionate term for my significant other.
There's no need for living in the past
We shouldn't dwell on the past.
Now i've found good lovin' gonna make it last
Now that I have found a good relationship, I want to make it last.
I tell the others don't bother me
I am telling other people not to bother me about my relationship.
Cuz when they look at you they don't see what i see
They don't see what I see in you.
No I don't
I don't do something that is being mentioned previously.
Listen to their wasted lines
I don't listen to their pointless criticisms.
Got my eyes wide open and i see the signs
I am aware of what is going on in our relationship.
Cuz they don't know about us
Because they don't understand our relationship.
They've never heard of love
They don't understand the love that we share.
No I don't
I don't do something that is being mentioned previously.
Listen to their wasted lines
I don't listen to their pointless criticisms.
Got my eyes wide open and I see the signs
I am aware of what is going on in our relationship.
Cuz they don't know about us
Because they don't understand our relationship.
They've never heard of love
They don't understand the love that we share.
Contributed by Aria T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@davidrowell3191
One core truth – this song is so good that it is virtually ‘bombproof’ and will continue to be so in the hands of any half-decent singer. Its simplicity, message, hook, chorus and melody offer up great raw material for a variety of artists, so the tone, tempo and instrumentation applied to each version leads to a ‘new freshness’ being discovered each time it’s recorded. I honestly don’t dislike any version that I’ve heard, because regardless of my varied musical tastes, I still find any take on it to be interesting, listenable & insightful. Without wishing to over-analyse this tune, to me it carries a rare empathy within it which can’t fail to come through in the delivery, regardless of whose point-of-view is being emphasized…..to paraphrase a Velvet Underground song title, “I’ll be your mirror”. In other words, you find in this song whatever YOU are looking for, and that’s why it’s so special. It is damn well lyrically perfect, but more than that, it creates and sustains believable emotions, empathy & even tenderness. When you hear this in any 3 minute pop song , you feel something real and authentic, which is why this song is so good. Kirsty MacColl wrote many great songs, but to me, if this was all she ever wrote, then her legacy is assured. It deserves to be. And the lyric…..” ‘Cos they don’t know about us, and they’ve never heard of love”.....these are the absolute clincher lines in this song, which elevate it to the level of sublime pop, in my opinion. Why? Because this couplet simply & ingeniously makes the listener instantly recall the feeling they had when there really was a ‘me & you’ only and for a time at least, nobody else existed. To write about the essence of love is difficult for even the best poets (maybe it’s well nigh impossible), but these two lines eloquently remind us that each perspective we have is unique, it's ours only, so it can’t truly be understood by outsiders, particularly in matters of the heart. Sheer genius, Kirsty. RIP.
@Tubebrerry
Well put, david rowell. The only thing I'd add is I think, however good all the covers are, there's really no substitute for the Kirsty version. This song is the voice of a teenager, and I think she wrote it when she was 19, maybe 20. But in her version, she SOUNDS like a teenager, even like she's 13 or 15. Think how different the tone is with Tracey Ullman's version, so much slicker and clearly sounding like a woman, not a teenager. The feeling of "us against the world" comes out in any version, but really comes home in Kirsty's.
@brinkers37
@Tubebrerry ~~ Written by Kirsty MacColl when she was just 16 and later covered by Tracey Ullman still using Kirsty's original backing track with a few added bells n whistles and still including some of her backing vocals too...
@steffilehmann2432
R.I.P Leslie ,your voice is fantastic !!!! 😪😪😪 Miss you 😪
@staceyann4362
Beautiful Voice :)
@mandaworld
epic rap battles history
@ibolyamadlenne7289
Isten áldotta tehetség voltál leslie! 😥😇🙏💐🖤
@ChilesRussellTaylor
R.I.P Leslie Carter! 😪
@EkaterineEkaterine-dn1ov
I love this song so much... 2017
@ditavoncheese1680
A song of my childhood ;-;