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The term Various Artists is used in the record industry when numerous singers and musicians collaborate on a song or collection of songs. Most often on Last.fm, compilation album tracks appear under the name of Various Artists erroneously because the individual artist is not listed in the album's ID3 information.
Compilation albums, for example.

Sometimes, single releases may be credited to Various Artists when their profits are going to charity and, usually in high-profile cases, are sometimes known by a group name. Examples include Band Aid with their releases of Do They Know It's Christmas? and USA for Africa with We Are The World.

Various Artists is also an actual performance name for Torsten Pröfrock, who runs the German DIN label. Torsten performs also as Dynamo, Erosion, Resilent, Traktor besides some others. He's a good friend of Robert Henke and since the Fall of 2004, he is a member of Monolake.

Various Artists was also a short-lived Bristol punk band formed by brothers Jonjo and Robin Key (originally from Birmingham). Other members were also simultaneously in Art Objects who went on to become The Blue Aeroplanes, the latter the Key brothers also co-wrote some songs and were involved in. When Various Artists imploded, the Key brothers went on to form Either / Or.

Various Artists also appear on tracks from musical theater soundtracks, due to the nature of having many cast members on one song, as well as an ensemble in some cases.

You Don't Know Me
Various Artists Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You don't even know me
You say that I'm not living right
You don't understand me
So why do you judge my life?

You don't even know me
You say that I'm not living right
You don't understand me

So why do you judge my life?

I don't ask for nothing
I'm always holding my own
Every time I turn around, there's something
People talking 'bout what they don't know
And when I try to move on up
They're always pullin' me down
I'm tired and I've had enough
It's my life, and I'm living it now

You don't even know me
You say that I'm not living right
You don't understand me
So why do you judge my life?

I always wonder why people try to hurt me
No happiness in their own lives
So they act out all their jealousy
Who are you to say that I'm living wrong?
Always telling me what to do
I've decided that I gotta be strong
What makes you think that I needed you?
You don't know me

You don't even know me
You say that I'm not livin' right
You don't understand me
So why do you judge my life

You don't even know me
You say that I'm not livin' right
You don't understand me
So why do you judge my life

Who are you?
You say I'm not livin' right
Anything I try to do
You haven't walked in my shoes
I'm gonna move on
It's my life, it's my life
It's my life, it's my life

You don't even know me
You say that I'm not livin' right
You don't understand me
So why do you judge my life

You don't even know me
You say that I'm not livin' right

You don't understand me
So why do you judge my life

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "You Don't Know Me" by Various Artists are about the frustration of being judged by people who don't truly know you. The artist sings about how people talk about her without understanding her or her situation. They try to dictate her life and tell her how to live it, but they haven't walked in her shoes or experienced her struggles. The artist is tired of the constant judgments and just wants to move on with her life without any interference.

The lyrics highlight the idea that no one can truly know another person's life or experiences, and therefore no one has the right to judge or criticize them. The artist suggests that the people who judge her are likely unhappy in their own lives and are acting out their jealousy onto her. She implies that those who judge others might not be happy with themselves, which is why they criticize others without knowing them first.

Overall, the song conveys a message of self-empowerment and taking control of your own life. The artist stands up for herself and tells her critics that their opinions don't matter because they don't truly know her. She encourages listeners to do the same and to not let others' judgments affect their lives negatively.

Line by Line Meaning

You don't even know me
You have no real knowledge of who I am

You say that I'm not living right
You pass judgment on my actions without understanding my motives

You don't understand me
You lack insight into my character and personality

So why do you judge my life?
If you're ignorant of my circumstances, why form an opinion?

I don't ask for nothing
I don't request anything from anybody

I'm always holding my own
I'm self-reliant and autonomous

Every time I turn around, there's something
Something always comes up

People talking 'bout what they don't know
People make unwarranted assumptions

And when I try to move on up
When I try to progress

They're always pullin' me down
They always try to hinder my progress

I'm tired and I've had enough
I'm fed up