Available in SoundCloud:https://soundcloud.com/user-869743247/valeria-daw-forgotten-aria-lauren-cho-original
Blurb:
Hi! I’m Lauren, and I’m currently a rising junior going to Korea International School. Ever since I began to devote myself to various service organizations, I’ve nurtured a growing passion to help the less privileged members of my community and to give them a voice—the human dignity, freedom, and safety that everyone deserves to have. I’m thrilled to be one of the founders of this website and have this platform to spread knowledge and understanding on the issue of poverty—especially on its more subtle aspects that are still every bit as important as the blatant figures and images which characterize poverty for the majority of people—and spark change.
Fun fact about me: I have an ever-expanding “family” of precious friends. These girls are my sisters :)
Lyric explanation:"Forgotten Aria"
The voice of the angel
in the promised neverland
whispers in my ear
“take my hand.”
Explanation- In my mind, the angel represents everything about the American dream. The angel in the famous painting of Manifest Destiny, the Statue of Liberty—all these figures are embodied in the angel. The promised neverland is where the angel of the American dream lives—a land of fulfilled dreams and prosperity. The life that all hopefuls wish to obtain, and the life that they believe is promised to them through equal opportunities and freedom once they enter America. This song is told from the perspective of the immigrant/impoverished looking to live a better life, and the angel and the prospect of the neverland tempts them to invest in America and the life it has to offer.
I reach out to grasp it
But it’s no longer there
I find myself trapped
in an eagle’s lair.
Explanation- As immigrants when they decide to invest their lives in America and reach out to “grasp” the opportunities that America promised, they realize that there are very few (if any) opportunities. The unfortunate reality of the American dream is that although it is widely portrayed by the media as equal opportunity for all, it is often exclusive only for the middle/upper class due to the marginalizing nature of capitalism. They find themselves trapped in this land—the “eagle’s lair”—with no other option but to try to live their life day-by-day.
Tell me
Was it all a facade
Reach me
If there is a God
Explanation- The speaker is in deep sorrow and on the border between denial and being grimly resigned. They ask themselves and the nation, Was the American dream a lie? Did I invest my life or blindly trust in this idea to chase after dream that doesn’t even exist? Is there a God who would allow such cruelty?
Oh
Lead me
To hope that there is more to life than survival
Find me
A home.
Explanation- The sentiments continue. They are desperate for confirmation that their life could mean more than a heartbeat—could entail hopes and dreams. They search for a home, a place of safety and belonging—a place where they would receive unconditional support. But their eyes remain restless.
And maybe one day
I’ll be free from the lights
Paralyzed by the eyes
Falling from the heights
Explanation- They want to escape the glaring lights of the news reporters’ cameras, the blinding lights of wealth and corruption. They’re no longer attracted to the lights, but are now repulsed by them. They feel the eyes of the nation on them, scrutinizing their every move—If you’re poor, act like it. Why are you wasting your money on nice looking clothes? Why are you so unkempt? Why are you so unprofessional?—and they’re paralyzed with the realization that they will never be accepted. And so they close their eyes and allow themselves to fall from the height of capitalism into the depths of poverty and despair.
Hope falling like sand
through my dirty fingertips
I hold
In my dreams
Who I could’ve been
Explanation- Even as their lives become harder and they begin to accept that there may be no escaping this situation, they protect their spirit. At least in their dreams they can reminisce and hope.
Tell me
Is it all a facade
Reach me
Prove there is a God
Oh
Lead me
To believe that there’s more to life than survival
Build me
A home.
Explanation- Their cries for help and safety become, bit-by-bit, more insistent. “Prove” instead of “if”—“believe” instead of “hope—“build” instead of “find”. They want action to be taken and they want change. They’re becoming angry.
Lie to me
Cry for me
Blind me with the luxury
Children say
Don’t leave me
Alone
Explanation- This anger manifests as they confront the nation and its government on its ignorance, corruption, and lack of empathy and change. “Lie to me”—we don’t have funds to spare for better welfare. “Cry for me”—yet politicians will still create an empathetic campaign out of our plight manipulate the hearts of the people for votes. “Blind me with the luxury”—and try to convince me that America is still the best country in every possible aspect. They witness children ripped apart from their families due to a lack of stable income.
Oh
Can’t you see
I’m my own
Person with a soul that bleeds
A heart that grieves
No roof to cover me
Explanation- They’re tired of society treating them as second-class citizens due to their socio-economic status—tired of people looking at them with nothing in their eyes but pity or disgust. They want to rest.
The voice of the angel
in the promised neverland
whispers in my ear
“take my hand.”
I reach out to grasp it
But it’s no longer there
It was never there
Explanation- The American dream had already been long gone. The voice they heard was one distorted through the ages, muffled by money and competition and discrimination. They’d been reaching for the hand of a ghost.
THEY STAND ALONE, SINGING THEIR FORGOTTEN ARIA.
—Lauren Cho
Comments