She self-released her first two albums, Lush and Retired from Sad, New Career in Business, while studying studio composition at Purchase College's Conservatory of Music. The albums were originally made as her senior project. Her third studio album, Bury Me at Makeout Creek, was released in 2014 on the label Double Double Whammy.
Mitski signed with Dead Oceans in 2015 and released Puberty 2, Be the Cowboy and Laurel Hell , the last of which made the top ten in several countries. In 2022, The Guardian dubbed her the "best young songwriter" in the United States. That same year, she co-wrote "This Is a Life" for the film Everything Everywhere All at Once, which earned her an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song. Her seventh studio album, The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We, was released in 2023.
Square
Mitski Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I once noticed from there
In your bed, as you slept
And I held my breath
Everything had its own place
And I wondered what space would I take
In the order you kept
Just tea in the night, I'd end up
Too hungry to sleep
So lying awake
I would follow the aching inside
I would find
It's for you won't be mine
I tried my hardest, for I'd never learned
God's very simple and love shouldn't burn
And I would've offered you all that you yearned for
But I was still waiting for something to earn
What is that quiet of snow in the night?
The dark rings with white noise as you stand and drown
Maybe it's all of these snowflakes
Screaming a choir of mute
As they brace for the ground
Well, that's my ride
Hope you had a good night
You know, you made me happy
Here, shake my hand
You make such a good man
Never once did you know me
I tried my hardest, for how do you learn
God's very simple and love doesn't burn
And maybe you'd offered me all that I yearned for
But I was still waiting for something to earn
Silly me, waiting
Mitski’s song Square opens with the line “your room was square, I once noticed from there,” and seems to be about an unrequited love where the object of affection is unaware of the singer’s feelings. The lyrics suggest that the singer has spent time in this boy’s bedroom, perhaps watching him sleep, and has even tried to eat like his girlfriend to be closer to him. However, despite her best efforts, she knows that he will never feel about her the same way that she feels about him.
There is a sense of unfulfilled longing in the lyrics as the singer tries to understand why her love for this person can’t be returned. She sings “I tried my hardest, for I’d never learned, God’s very simple and love shouldn’t burn” which suggests that she’s been hurt by love before, and is perhaps questioning why it has to be so painful. The final line of the song “but I was still waiting for something to earn, silly me, waiting” implies that the singer has been holding onto a fruitless hope that the boy will come around and love her, but she’s come to the realization that it’s time to let go.
Overall, Mitski’s Square is a song about unrequited love and the pain that can come with it, as well as the struggle to let go of someone who will never love you back.
Line by Line Meaning
Your room was square
I observed that your room had a four-cornered shape
I once noticed from there
I previously took notice from where I was standing
In your bed, as you slept
While you were sleeping in your bed
And I held my breath
I stopped breathing momentarily
Everything had its own place
Every object was positioned in an organized manner
And I wondered what space would I take
I had thoughts about how I would fit in that environment
In the order you kept
In the specific arrangement you maintained
I tried to eat like your girlfriend
I attempted to consume food in the way your girlfriend did
Just tea in the night, I'd end up
Only tea at night, resulting in
Too hungry to sleep
Feeling too hungry to fall asleep
So lying awake
Laying down yet unable to sleep
I would follow the aching inside
I would chase the inner pain that I felt
I would find
I discovered
It's for you won't be mine
That my affection for you will never be reciprocated
I tried my hardest, for I'd never learned
I made my extreme effort, as I was never taught
God's very simple and love shouldn't burn
The idea of God and love is uncomplicated, therefore it should not cause pain
And I would've offered you all that you yearned for
I could have given everything you desired
But I was still waiting for something to earn
However, I was waiting to earn something in return
What is that quiet of snow in the night?
I wonder what that silence of snow at night is?
The dark rings with white noise as you stand and drown
The darkness is filled with static sound while you stand and sink
Maybe it's all of these snowflakes
It could be all of these tiny snow particles
Screaming a choir of mute
That are creating a choir of silence
As they brace for the ground
As they prepare themselves to hit the surface
Well, that's my ride
Oh, that's my transportation
Hope you had a good night
I hope your night was enjoyable
You know, you made me happy
You made me happy you know
Here, shake my hand
Please, just give me your hand so we can shake as a form of goodbye
You make such a good man
You have many qualities of a good man
Never once did you know me
But you never actually knew me
I tried my hardest, for how do you learn
I did everything I could, but how can you learn
God's very simple and love doesn't burn
The concept of God and love is not complicated, and both should not inflict pain
And maybe you'd offered me all that I yearned for
Perhaps, you might have given me everything that I desired
But I was still waiting for something to earn
Yet, I was still waiting to earn something in return
Silly me, waiting
I realize that I was foolish for waiting
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Mitsuki Laycock
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
megangoldberg
on My Love Mine All Mine
very interesting
mon
on My Love Mine All Mine
w song
Samounou
on My Love Mine All Mine
Samounou
Samounou
on My Love Mine All Mine
Gaoussou
Tut
on My Love Mine All Mine
Great song
kenna
on My Love Mine All Mine
Moon, a hole of light
Through the big top tent up high
Here before and after me
Shinin′ down on me
Moon, tell me if I could
Send up my heart to you?
So, when I die, which I must do
Could it shine down here with you?
Cause my love is mine, all mine
I love, mine, mine, mine
Nothing in the world belongs to me
But my love, mine, all mine, all mine
My baby here on earth
Showed me what my heart was worth
So, when it comes to be my turn
Could you shine it down here for her?
Cause my love is mine, all mine
I love, mine, mine, mine
Nothing in the world belongs to me
But my love, mine, all mine
Nothing in the world is mine for free
But my love, mine, all mine, all mine
pax
on Brand New City
"But if I gave up on being pretty, I wouldn't know how to be alive. I should move to a brand new city and teach myself how to die." that part goddamn so damn good
i
on A Burning Hill
i think for me i interpret this as how i’ve accepted my sadness and anxiety, at this point i even cause more pain for myself on purpose. i just observe it and don’t do anything and even if i do i just make everything worse and if i somehow feel better im disappointed spreading more fire to watch and observe.
nana
on Fireworks
I wish i was as beautiful as this song