Textual analysis and interpretation of the song Rooting For You (London Grammar)

TEXTUAL ANALYSIS:

Considering the title the reader might be curious as to whom the speaker is “rooting for”. The progressive form of the verb “to root” induces to think of a dynamic song, but we cannot say that for sure without analysing the text in its entirety. The title may mean that the speaking voice has faith in someone and wants them to be happy and succesfull.

Looking at the structure we immediately notice that the text is made up into two verse and two chorus alternated.

The first stanza is organized into seven lines, the third stanza by five lines, while the second and the fourth by nine lines each.

In the song the speaking voice (in this instance the singer) is refferring to a person she cares about, perhaps her lover, and telling them how she feels about them, she’s telling them that she is afraid of her feelings, but even more afraid of living without that person. She is telling that person that everything she feels or does is for them, that she is always going to stand by their side, even if they have started drifting apart and she often feels lonely when she’s with that person.

The speaking voice conveys a sense of doubt, not in her desire to be with that person, but in their relationship.

The sounds used in the song help convey the energy of the song, which is full of intense emotions such as love, hesitation, devotion to the subject of the song, and so on, leaving the listener a deeply melancholic feeling. Even the contrast between the dynamic expectation created by the title and the reality of the song, even in the use of the word “winter” with the word “burn” which belongs to a different semantic field.

The vowels are extended in the singing, making the listener feel lost in between the words, but some lines are faster and some are slower, with high notes to highlight the feelings to express, for example the line from the chorus “ It is only, you are the only thing I've ever truly known” prepares the reader for the change of pace happening in the following lines and having its climax in the “And my darlin', I'll be rooting for you”, sung faster and with deeper voice.

The song alternates the use of vocalic sounds and dental sounds, reflecting the feeling of contrast expressed in the text, for example in the first two lines the songwriter wrote “Let winter break \\ Let it burn 'til I see you again”, associating the word “winter” with the verb “to burn” and thus using a synaesthesia to create an image that sticks to the mind of the reader. This metaphor used in the first lines is especially effective because of the cold tone of the singer’s voice in the high notes and the slow and placid music, matching the feelings conveyed in the text and creating a harmony capable of taking you into a completely different universe.

And it is indeed the use of metaphors the most used figure of speech of the song, creating a series of vivid images that, along with the sounds, takes the listener to a different time and a different place, specifically in the middle of a snow-clad valley.

The song debates the decision to love someone regardless of the difficulties in relationships and the hesitation inside of you. It is about learning to let go of the things keeping us down, while learning how to hold on tight to the things that really matter to us, and learning to love. Its message to the listeners is that they will always have someone there for them during hard times.

I really liked this song because listening to it feels a lot like dreaming, because you just can’t help but surrender tu the singer’s voice and let yourself feel what she’s feeling.