Brave Lyrics
You can be amazing
You can turn a phrase into a weapon or a drug
You can be the outcast
Or be the backlash of somebody’s lack of love
Or you can start speaking up
Nothing’s gonna hurt you the way that words do
When they settle ‘neath your skin
Kept on the inside and no sunlight
Sometimes a shadow wins
But I wonder what would happen if you
[Chorus]
Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly, I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly, I wanna see you be brave
[Post-Chorus]
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I wanna see you be brave
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I wanna see you be brave
Everybody’s been there
Everybody’s been stared down by the enemy
Fallen for the fear
And done some disappearing
Bow down to the mighty
Don’t run, stop holding your tongue
Maybe there’s a way out of the cage where you live
Maybe one of these days, you can let the light in
And show me, how big your brave is
[Chorus]
Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly, I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly, I wanna see you be brave
[Bridge]
And since your history of silence
Won't do you any good
Did you think it would?
Let your words be anything but empty
Why don't you tell them the truth?
Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly, I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly, I wanna see you be brave
[Post-Chorus]
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I wanna see you be brave
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
See you be brave
[Outro]
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
About
“Brave” is the lead single of The Blessed Unrest. An upbeat pop song, it was co-written by Bareilles and Fun.’s Jack Antonoff. Bareilles has said that the song was meant to be a message to a friend who was struggling to come out as gay. In her memoir, Sounds Like Me, My Life (so far) in Song, she writes:
…[the song] became a love letter to a very dear friend of mine… she was struggling to come out with her evolving sexuality to friends and family and didn’t yet see a way to do it.
She goes on to discuss how it was a message she needed for herself, about how “we could try to be stronger than our weaknesses, and a shine a light on something better.”
Since its conception, the song has proved inspiring for a good many people. The University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital notably created a music video for the song.
Hillary Clinton also used the song frequently throughout her 2016 presidential campaign, a fact that Bareilles was clearly enthusiastic about.
The song is often compared to Katy Perry’s “Roar”. All parties are okay with that.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
- 1.Brave
- 3.Hercules
- 4.Manhattan
- 7.Cassiopeia
- 8.1000 Times
- 9.I Choose You
- 10.Eden
- 11.Islands
- 12.December
- 14.Beautiful Girl
- 15.Parking Lot
- 16.Root Down