# The 1975 doesn’t hold back in their new single “Love It If We Made It”
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## The 1975’s “Love It If We Made It” is a personal, yet passionate, disapproval of America’s current socio-political climate.
By: Elizabeth Costa
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###### A still taken from the “Love It If We Made It” music video
Released 7/20/2018 via [Dirty Hit](http://atwoodmagazine.com/tag/dirty-hit-records) / [Interscope](http://atwoodmagazine.com/tag/interscope-records) ,it is the second single off of the UK pop band’s upcoming third album /A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships/(November 2018) .
The 1975’s new single “Love It If We Made It” revolves around all of the injustices that have occurred recently, no matter how large or small. The coverage of topics spans from the current victimization people of color face going through systematic racism (prison-industrial complex included in that), or the too-soon death of Rapper Lil Peep, even the weird and developing friendship of the President and Kanye West happening on Twitter. They manage to mix all of these issues and happenings all together, and make an artful song out of it.
I know that was quite a mouthful to get through, but remember: Matt (Matty) Healy & the rest of the band aren’t ready to give up just yet. “Love It If We Made It” takes all these dismal subject matters—twists them into a political story to be heard—adding their familiar mix of synth-pop and pop melodies; similar to their /2016 I Like It When You Sleep, For You Are So Beautiful Yet So Unaware Of It/defined sound—and in turn, give us eye-catching visual and lyrical commentary.
Matty has been writing to our deepest feelings since the beginning, with songs speaking truths about our hidden insecurities and self-doubt, love and lust, and nostalgia and regrets for past experiences. This single—and potentially the rest of the album—act as a reflection of personal growth for Matty. “Love It If We Made It” is his personal, yet passionate, disapproval of America’s current socio-political climate.
The song starts out pretty mellow for the first 23 seconds, with calm background instrumentals. At the 24 second mark, Matty’s voice erupts into a strong near-shout for the first verse. His voice is rough, emitting absolute pure emotion as he sings his opening lines. The listeners will most likely get the sense that he’s ‘holding back’, trying to hold back his emotions.
*Fucking in a car, shooting heroin*
*Saying controversial things just for the hell of it*
*Selling melanin and then*
*suffocate the black men*
*Start with misdemeanors*
*and we’ll make a business out of them*
*And we can find out the information*
*Access all the applications that are*
*hardening positions*
*based on miscommunication*
*Oh! Fuck your feelings!*
*Truth is only hearsay!*
*We’re just left to decay!*
*Modernity has failed us*
Matt uses “Love It If We Made It” as a lyrical message of awakening; wanting to shift the minds of their fans on /this/ moment in time, everything currently happening.
*But I’d love it if we made it*
*Yes, I’d love it if we made it*
*Yes, I’d love it if we made it*
*Yes, I’d love it if we made it*
Typically, pop bands aren’t expected to sing about anything that isn’t included in the pre-defined list of Love, Lust, or anything similar to that. Matt & the rest of the band take a step out of their comfort zone by personally commenting their disagreements on American politics and major events, while successfully standing their ground on their feelings.
Current-event overload pushed aside for a moment, what makes this song even more relevant is how close to home any single issue they mentioned can hit someone—no matter who you are.
I couldn’t even give you a definite answer on how many people I know, whom have been personally affected by any one of the issues called out in this song. Myself included, having family members that are immigrants who came to this country so long ago, seeing how other Latinx people are treated in my community, all around the country hits very close.
“Love It If We Made It” really does a phenomenal job at capturing how much is actually going on in these times, including the emotional and mental strain its putting on people.
*Poison me daddy*
*I got the Jones right through my bones*
*Write it on a piece of stone*
*A beach of drowning 3 year olds*
*Rest in peace Lil Peep*
*The poetry is in the streets*
*Jesus save us!*
*Modernity has failed us*
Filled to the brim with numerous real-life references, “Love It If We Made It” is saying what needs to be said. The fourth line of this lyric is a reference to the death of a 3-year-old Syrian refugee Alan Kurdi. “Alan Kurdi was a three-year-old Syrian boy of Kurdish ethnic background whose image made global headlines after he drowned September of 2015 in the Mediterranean Sea. He and his family were Syrian refugees trying to reach Europe amid the European refugee crisis.” (Bryan Walsh & Time Photo, December 29, 2015) The picture of Kurdi’s lifeless body went viral, and is considered one of the most shocking moments of the refugee crisis.
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Followed shortly after, the fifth line is a reference to the late rapper and singer, Lil Peep. “Peep, whose real name was Gustav Åhr, died last month in Tucson, Arizona, where he was supposed to hold a concert in support of his debut album, /Come Over When You’re Sober (Part One)/. He died of an accidental overdose on fentanyl and generic Xanax.” (Kory Grow & Rolling Stone, December 8, 2017). He was only 21 years old. His tragic passing attracted online and in-concert tributes form many mainstream artists, like his good friend /Fat Nick/. It also ultimately drew attention to the ongoing opioid crisis occurring in the US.
It’s crazy to think that a lot of these issues are considered “past issues”, and yet, we are still facing them to this very day. Matty then gives a decently sized list of his top ones in this break:
*Consultation, degradation*
*Fossil fueling, masturbation*
*Immigration, liberal kitsch*
*Kneeling on a pitch*
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###### Touchdown Wire – USA Today
In the third and fourth lines here, he is referencing the ongoing protests happening in the NFL. “Kaepernick’s protest first occurred 21 months ago but was not immediately noticed. At that point, he simply sat on the benches during the US national anthem during a preseason game, just next to some giant Gatorade jugs.” (Clark Mindock & The Independent, September 4, 2018) His actions inspired other players to hop on the bandwagon and protest in a similar fashion throughout the 2016 season, and seasons to follow. Critics stated that these protests were disrespecting the American Flag, and the players responded by saying they were just using their right of freedom of speech.
This then transitions into the third verse, where Matty references two Donald Trump quotes:
*“I moved on her like a bitch!”*
*Excited to be indicted*
*Unrequited house with seven pools*
*“Thank you Kanye, very cool!”*
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*War has been incited*
*and guess what, you’re all invited*
*And you’re famous*
*Modernity has failed us*
You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out what he’s speaking on with lyrics like /“excited to be indicted”/and/“war has been incited and guess what you’re all invited”/.
Matty’s lyrics are then brought to life with the music video he just recently released. It is a series of clips and scenes stitched together depicting: Police brutality, gun violence, riots and protests, Donald Trump and Kanye West, Brett Kavanaugh, the KKK, nuclear testing and North Korea—to name just a few scenes relating to recent memory. Bright flashes of color included, the strong and saturated visuals probably overwhelm any viewer at first glance—and if you think about it, that was probably Matty’s intention. Yes, all of these things happening all around us in this day and age are extremely overwhelming, but that is no excuse to turn away from it all. It is up to us to address every single issue; we have to heal our world.
I cannot wait to hear the rest of /A Brief Inquiry into Online Relationships/.