My Favorite Song Analysis. “Streetcar” by Daniel Caesar

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Life is a journey, not a destination.” All throughout life, we tend to focus on what is going to happen and how we are going to reach our goals, but I have learned that living in the moment and making the best out of every situation is what life is really about. Everything that we go through in our lives makes us who we are and we should not be afraid to go back and learn from our mistakes because life moves quickly. The song Streetcar by Daniel Caesar is about a man who realizes how much he has grown and the struggles he has gone through. Throughout the song he repeatedly uses the word “streetlights”, representing the moments and experiences in his life. He also repeats the chorus over and over again showing how repetitive life is and how if we don’t learn from our mistakes, we will just keep repeating them. The song Streetcar relates to my life because it has taught me about change, self reflection, and acceptance of where I am right now.

Daniel Caesar's song Streetcar taught me about growth and change because in the first line he says, “Let me know, Do I still got time to grow? Things ain’t always set in stone. That be known let me know” (1-4). By saying “Do I still got time to grow”(2) he feels that it is too late for him to change and make a difference in his life. In the line after he is negotiating with a higher power saying that not everything is permanent by using what he believes is true saying that “Things ain’t always set in stone” (3) and asks the higher power to let him know in any way possible. This relates to a time in my life where I have experienced a feeling of failure in school when I did not perform as well as I usually do. I felt like I had disappointed everyone around me and there was no way to save myself from the hole I had dug myself into. I thought it was over for me. I would never get into a good college, get a job or succeed in any way. I felt like I did not have the opportunity to grow and change anymore, but when I listened to this song, I realized that nothing lasts forever and that I will always have the opportunity to change at any time in my life. In high school everything seems like a big deal but in the end we are all kids and we are all still growing. As long as we are learning from our mistakes there is an opportunity to change for the better.

In addition, Streetcar has taught me about self reflection. Self reflection is important for any person to learn from the mistakes that they have made and become a better person. In Streetcar, Caesar's outlook on life is nostalgic when he says, “Seems like streetlights, glowing happen to be just like moments passing in front of me” (5-6).The entire mood of this song reminds me of a long car ride in the city because the melodies and rhythms are so mellow and sweet. It has a calming effect which I always feel when I am driving in the city, especially in the nighttime. The simplicity of the song just brings me back to how old music was. It always reminded me of the past. This makes me think about how quickly life passed me by. I feel better about myself when I listen to Streetcar because when we drive fast the streetlights start to blur together and get harder to see just like memories. Once we get older, it is harder to recall of memories and situations we have been through because they start to blur together in our heads. This shows that the situations we go through are not always as terrible as they seem to be. They just seem big because we are facing them at that moment. This mindset helps me with my anxiety when I start to panic about my future or anything that has happened to me before. Because of this song, I tell myself that it will be over soon and I should make the most of every moment. I realized that soon, the moment that I am panicking about will be yet another “streetlight” in my road of life.

One more thing that Streetcar by Daniel Caesar has taught me was acceptance. When Caesar says, “ So I hopped in, the cab and, I paid my fare see I know my destination, but I’m just not there in these streets… I’m just not there. Life just aint fair (24-29).” In the song, the cab is supposed to represent something that allows him to move on from his past. By saying that he “paid his fare,” he shows that he has had his share of struggles in his life. In a way, I relate to what he says here because in my life I have also had struggles that have made me who I am today. I know where I want to be in life and what I want to achieve but I’m just not there yet. In the song, Caesar says, “I’m just not there. Life just ain’t fair.” (28-29)When he says this, he mentions that he is not at his destination and life is punishing him for no reason. Sometimes I feel this way when I see all of my friends succeeding in their lives, and even though I work hard, I feel as if I am a failure. However, I have learned that life is a journey and everyone has their ups and downs. That does not mean life is unfair,it means that we all have had or will have a time where we have struggled ; and throughout my life I have learned to accept that.

Daniel Caesar's song, Streetcar , is about a person who looks back on his life nostalgically by comparing all of his memories to streetlights when he drives down the street. I personally relate this song because it has taught me about growth when I thought it was too late, it showed me the importance of self reflection and learning from my mistakes, and it revealed an acceptance for myself that I did not have before. Caesar's lyrics have taught me that life moves so quickly and we need to learn to live in the moment and learn from our mistakes. In addition, I realized that everyone goes through sorrows but if we keep pushing through and accept everything that comes towards us we will reach brighter days. Life really is not fair and even though there are people that succeed before me,I should not feel like a failure and compare myself to everyone I know because we are all different and have our own strengths and weaknesses. In the journey of life we will come across many moments, or streetlights and when we eventually arrive at our destination, we will look back on these moments and realize that they really did shape us into who we are today.