Dey had been playing various instruments since her preteen years, and eventually she posted some of her songs on her blog. One of these songs caught the attention of Mat Cothran of Elvis Depressedly, who brought Dey's music to the attention of Warren Hildebrand (Foxes in Fiction), co-owner of Orchid Tapes.
Dey had long been a fan of the label, so she jumped at the chance to work with them. She released a short album titled asdfasdf for free on her Bandcamp page in 2015, and when Orchid Tapes issued a cassette version, it sold out its first pressing in a day.
She then signed to Joy Void for her second release, the full-length Flood Network, which was released in August of 2016. Dey has kept up a steady stream of activity since, between compilation one-offs and a long series of covers. She released a collaborative album with Devi McCallion called "Some New Form Of Life" in 2018, which was followed up with another collaboration between the two called "Magic Fire Brain", released in 2020.
Dey's second full-length album, solipsisters, was released through Run For Cover records in May of 2019. She has received praise for her work from Pitchfork, NPR, Fader, Vice, SPIN, Goldflakepaint, Stereogum, FACT, and more; counting amongst her fans Frank Ocean, Japanese Breakfast, Elvis Depressedly and a slew of other musicians making the most earnest and creative independent music today.
Happiness
katie dey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I′m not above it
No denying anymore
I want love for you too
Happiness, nurturing
Understanding, holding, touching
I want life while I'm alive
I want life with less pain
With no suffering, no more hungering
No more borders, needless torture
Hold my hand, I can't stand it
If you want me, fuck this waiting
Let's escape this loneliness
If you′re ready
I am here
Lay your body
On my body
I can hold you
Breathe my breath
Kissing your neck
Fuck to death
If you wanted
La, la, la anyway just a thought
I′m embarrassed ignore me
In Katie Dey's song "Happiness," the singer acknowledges that they want love and are finally being honest about it. The lyrics convey a sense of vulnerability and longing for a deep and mutually fulfilling relationship. The singer desires love not just for themselves, but for their partner too, and highlights the importance of nurturing, understanding, holding, and touching in a successful relationship.
The song then shifts to the desire for life that is free of pain and suffering, where borders and torture are nonexistent. The singer craves a life that does not include unnecessary hardships, no need to hunger for basic necessities, and no barriers that prevent people from living in peace and harmony. The final few lines of the song are directed towards the singer's partner, urging them to take the leap and not succumb to loneliness. Life is too short, and they are ready for love, to hold and be held, to breathe each other's breath, and to "fuck to death," cautioning that it is just a thought and hopes that the listeners will ignore the embarrassment.
Overall, the lyrics of "Happiness" by Katie Dey depict the universal desire for love and companionship, highlighting the importance of nurturing and a life free of pain and suffering.
Line by Line Meaning
I want love
The singer desires love.
I′m not above it
The singer does not consider themselves too good for love.
No denying anymore
The singer no longer denies their desire for love.
I want love for you too
The artist wants their loved one to experience love as well.
Happiness, nurturing
The artist desires a loving relationship that involves feelings of joy and care for each other.
Understanding, holding, touching
The singer wants to be in a relationship with good communication and physical intimacy.
I want life while I'm alive
The singer desires to truly live during their lifetime.
I′m not lying, not this time
The artist is being truthful about their desires.
I want life with less pain
The artist wants a life with less emotional and physical pain.
With no suffering, no more hungering
The artist wants to live without experiencing emotional or physical hunger and suffering.
No more borders, needless torture
The singer desires a life without physical or emotional barriers, and without unnecessary suffering.
Hold my hand, I can't stand it
The artist wants physical comfort and reassurance from their loved one.
If you want me, fuck this waiting
The singer is tired of waiting and wants their loved one to take action.
Let's escape this loneliness
The singer wants to leave behind their feelings of loneliness with their loved one.
If you′re ready
The singer is willing to pursue a relationship if their loved one is willing and ready.
I am here
The artist is available and willing to be with their loved one.
Lay your body
The artist wants physical intimacy with their loved one.
On my body
The singer desires physical closeness and intimacy with their loved one.
I can hold you
The singer desires to provide comfort and care for their loved one.
Breathe my breath
The artist wants to experience close physical intimacy with their loved one, possibly even sharing breath.
Kissing your neck
The artist desires physical affection with their loved one.
Fuck to death
The artist desires an intense and passionate physical relationship with their loved one.
If you wanted
The singer is open to pursuing an intense physical relationship with their loved one if that is what their loved one desires as well.
La, la, la anyway just a thought
The artist is changing the subject or making a random aside.
I′m embarrassed ignore me
The singer is acknowledging that they feel embarrassed and are asking to be ignored.
Contributed by Jordyn S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@jaffro1325
it makes me so happy that people are making music like this <3
@aaaadyr8856
Y is this so good
@j.brandonpaine6365
Never heard of her before, but I'm really liking this. Figured out that she had an Australian accent halfway through and that helped me understand it better. Haha. Thanks for the lyrics in the description. More uploaders should do that and not leave it to comments
@josephbastidas3561
RFC is one of the handful of labels where I willingly check out even the artists that idk because the roster never disappoints
@ms769
The most beautiful song I’ve heard
@jaffro1325
this is one of the best songs ever written tho
@d-5037
It's like Regina Spektor meets Radiohead. Beautiful.
@devantecarter1441
Um like.. I smell some art up in here !
@commonsenserhetoric
👍nice
@missseveri3512
🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰