“I was always a writer," says the man formerly known as Aaron Livingston. "Before I really learned music, I was serious about writing. Didn’t matter what it was. Just playing with words.”
Considering how long he's been making music, that's saying something. Born in Los Angeles to a preacher and a teacher, as a kid he absorbed songs from dusty family records and learned saxophone and piano, though he felt more at home inventing his own language on those instruments rather than following the lesson plan. Adapt or die, as they say.
Cycling through jazz, rock and R&B history, the hungry young son was beginning his true education. A few years later, the Livingstons moved to Queens, introducing Aaron to the active arts of hip-hop, basketball and city life. High school in suburban Jersey left him wanting more, so he headed to Manhattan and Columbia University, where he discovered art, recreational substances, and girls, girls, girls. He dropped out, got a job, got sad, kept journals. He moved to Philly, enrolled at Temple University, met the legendary Roots crew, even played music with them; they put his voice on an album, undun. He had a daughter, then a son. He was happy, still writing all the while.
Then, slowly, the music stalled. Faded. He got another dead end job. He checked out of days. He got sad again. He forgot how to adapt.
But, as it has the ability to do, the songwriting saved him. It was in his blood, he remembered. Coltrane. Hendrix. Santana. Tribe. And this time he vowed to never let it go. That's not to say he's always happy; he's human, after all. But making music helps keep things in perspective.
"I feel the weight of life as I always did, as everyone does," he says. "But I feel the weight lifted, because I love doing this. And the more I do it, the more I love it."
Son Little writes everywhere, every day, finding inspiration on the train, in a car, on the street, in the supermarket, with his children. Sometimes the ideas are fresh. Sometimes a tune comes from his past, a single spark. Nothing is off limits.
"It could be just a thought, and everything else comes from that," he says. "In one of my books could be a phrase that later is a song, and then the song becomes a whole catalog. It’s gotta germinate from somewhere."
Inspiration firmly struck, the song begins to bloom. There are many channels to Son Little's broadcast, varied stops on the dial, from blues to soul to funk to folk, and jook-joint jazz and chamber pop and back again. His voice—raw, weary yet alert, grave and gravelly, Marvin and Otis and Stevie all at once—soars and creeps, cracks and moans. His songs haunt, thrill, yearn and stomp like all the best work of his heroes.
And the learning never stops. Little has collaborated with highly respected artists like The Roots and the producer/DJ RJD2, mentoring under the former and creating a duo with the latter called Icebird, which allowed him to flex his considerable vocal chops and song arrangement skills.
"I've always loved the studio, but RJ helped me see how I can use it more effectively and find ways to challenge myself, and be inventive with sound. And The Roots, it’s hard to quantify what I’ve learned from them. Everything from how to rehearse to how to occupy the stage and command it…two things that are very fundamental in this business, and they are masters."
This fall sees the release of the first recorded output from Son Little for Anti- Records, an EP called, wouldn't you know it, Things I Forgot. Six songs: three babies (released first as videos), two twins, and an RJD2 remix. It's all there, all those misremembered things: Triumph and trophies, hardship and heartache, soft sentences, loud chapters, facts and birthdays, faces and places and scrapes and scales, nights and weeks and years all lost, gone into the ether, slipped away, out-sizing our normal human bandwidth.
"The singles, 'Cross My Heart' and 'Your Love Will Blow Me Away When My Heart Aches' and 'The River,' were more or less written consecutively," he says. "And so I think they were sort of internal responses to one other, complements. It's harder to place but I’ve been tinkering with the other two, 'Joy' and 'Alice,' for a long time. They’re sort of akin to one another in terms of mood. This is a small collection and maybe it's not as much a singular vision...it's more of a handful.”
A grip of memories; Things He Forgot. Son Little writes to remember, matching the disparate vibes of his full, full life with a patchwork blanket of sound, experience and inspiration. Inventing, observing, adapting. And still, it grows.
"I don’t see any end to the learning," he says. "And to understanding more of something that you immerse yourself in. Could be anything, again. Right now I’m immersed in this music and I feel that my understanding appreciates and changes scope and perspective. It's really rewarding in its own way."
Cross My Heart
Son Little Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And in my cups brown fills my brain won't go away
These five yellow girls all on parade asphyxiate
Still stuck in a cage tryna ply my trade won't go away
And I'm afraid
Your love will blow me away
Am I dumb
Or am I just another runaway
When shadows creep across my floor won't go away
You've had enough but still want more won't go away
My engine gunning thunderbirds asphalt wanna race
Still trapped in a box tryna clear my name won't go away
I'm afraid
Your love will blow me away
Am I dumb
All 'cause I numb the pain
Or am I just another runaway
Runaway
This afghan kush we're bubbling won't burn away
My moon my queen been gone since May so I lie awake
My easy death in ecstasy my hands still shake
When my heart aches I'm drowning pain won't go away
And I'm afraid
Your love will blow me away
Am I dumb
All 'cause I numb the pain
I'm afraid
Yer love will blow me away
Am I dumb
All 'cause I numb the pain
Or am I just another runaway
Runaway
The lyrics in Son Little's "Your Love Will Blow Me Away When My Heart Aches" portray feelings of fear, pain, and uncertainty. The song appears to describe the struggle to cope with emotional pain, and the search for a way to numb it. The scene is set with the words, "When my heart aches I'm drowning, pain won't go away," suggesting the depth of the character's emotional suffering. The reference to "cups brown" could be drugs or alcohol that are used to dull the emotional pain that is being felt. However, this attempt to numb the pain is only temporary, as the same emotions are bound to resurface again.
The song appears to use different scenes to convey the character's emotional state, and the struggle associated with trying to find happiness in a life that seems trapped. The words, "Still stuck in a cage, tryna ply my trade," suggest a sense of being trapped and powerless, while the reference to "five yellow girls all on parade asphyxiate" may symbolize the presence of suffering and anxiety. The lines, "When shadows creep across my floor won't go away, You've had enough but still want more won't go away," further reinforces this feeling of being trapped. The song continues to describe the character's fear that even love itself, "Your love will blow me away," will be too much, and lead to more emotional pain.
Overall, Son Little's "Your Love Will Blow Me Away When My Heart Aches" is a song that seeks to describe the struggle to cope with emotional pain, and the resulting attempt to find ways to cope with it. The song does this through different scenes that convey a sense of being trapped, powerless, and uncertain about the future.
Line by Line Meaning
When my heart aches I'm drowning pain won't go away
I'm overwhelmed with sorrow that seems to never disappear.
And in my cups brown fills my brain won't go away
I keep drinking to forget, but nothing helps the weight on my mind.
These five yellow girls all on parade asphyxiate
I feel trapped and suffocated by my circumstances.
Still stuck in a cage tryna ply my trade won't go away
I can't seem to escape the situation I'm in, despite trying to make a living.
And I'm afraid
I feel scared and insecure.
Your love will blow me away
I fear that your love will be too much for me to handle.
Am I dumb
I question my own intelligence.
All 'cause I numb the pain
I wonder if the way I cope is making things worse.
Or am I just another runaway
Perhaps I'm just running away from my problems instead of facing them.
When shadows creep across my floor won't go away
I'm haunted by darkness and fear that won't leave me alone.
You've had enough but still want more won't go away
I know I've pushed you to your limit, but I still crave your attention.
My engine gunning thunderbirds asphalt wanna race
I have a restless energy and need to feel alive, even if it means taking risks.
Still trapped in a box tryna clear my name won't go away
I'm stuck defending myself and proving my worth, but it seems hopeless.
This afghan kush we're bubbling won't burn away
Even smoking weed can't make me forget my problems completely.
My moon my queen been gone since May so I lie awake
I miss someone who was once important to me and it's keeping me up at night.
My easy death in ecstasy my hands still shake
Even imagining an escape from my pain is terrifying and unsettling.
Lyrics © MOTHERSHIP MUSIC PUBLISHING
Written by: AARON EARL LIVINGSTON
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind