She never actually sang American Life

[A. A. Aardvark 4,842]

26 minutes ago, MCL_1993 said:

Please don't be such a moron. It's the editing 🙄🙄🙄🙄

please don't care

"Don't drive like James,
James drives like a prick..."

[RUADJAI 14,957]

If you ever take vocal lessons, they also teach you to focus your notes on the vowels. You can’t really sing consonants. 
 

Now, her singing R sounds is a different story. 🤡

[A. A. Aardvark 4,842]

31 minutes ago, finallyenoughdick said:

If you listen to American Life backwards, she says "I love TonyMontana, he's my biggest fan".

"Donna's vocals were recorded using the The Calrec Soundfield Microphone."
 

 

[Redha DBL 7,337]

Just out curiosity, those who says it's stupid to believe she sings American lie in the chorus, can you elaborate how it's supid ? I ask seriously cause in my opinion singing American lie makes even more sense with the message of the song and it's a brilliant subtility that a few artists would do. It makes so much sense that i have a hard time understanding how people couldn't even consider for a second her line says American lie instead of American life and reject that idea without even a though. Now if someone who refuses to believe the lyric says Lie would make an elaborated answer as for why it is impossible that would be welcome 😁

[A. A. Aardvark 4,842]

29 minutes ago, TonyMontana said:

Just out curiosity, those who says it's stupid to believe she sings American lie in the chorus, can you elaborate how it's supid ? I ask seriously cause in my opinion singing American lie makes even more sense with the message of the song and it's a brilliant subtility that a few artists would do. It makes so much sense that i have a hard time understanding how people couldn't even consider for a second her line says American lie instead of American life and reject that idea without even a though. Now if someone who refuses to believe the lyric says Lie would make an elaborated answer as for why it is impossible that would be welcome 😁

shake your head
 

 

[A. A. Aardvark 4,842]

1 hour ago, RUADJAI said:

If you ever take vocal lessons, they also teach you to focus your notes on the vowels. You can’t really sing consonants. 
 

Now, her singing R sounds is a different story. 🤡

[EgoRod 5,448]

3 hours ago, TonyMontana said:

Just out curiosity, those who says it's stupid to believe she sings American lie in the chorus, can you elaborate how it's supid ? I ask seriously cause in my opinion singing American lie makes even more sense with the message of the song and it's a brilliant subtility that a few artists would do. It makes so much sense that i have a hard time understanding how people couldn't even consider for a second her line says American lie instead of American life and reject that idea without even a though. Now if someone who refuses to believe the lyric says Lie would make an elaborated answer as for why it is impossible that would be welcome 😁

I don't think is about being stupid.

But she put the lyrics in the  booklet and they say Life.

Then you have auditory illusions like the McGurk Effect:

 and also the F sound is a fricative, it hasn't got  a sound like a K or a T. Going along the E it can become a really soft pronunciation or even mute.

And Mirwais distortions and twitching of high pitch makes it even harder to get in detail.

I personally hear Life  and I wouldn't doubt she plays with the double entendre of the two meanings, Like in god/gun control.

But I wouldn't go as far as saying she sings Lie, just a soft Life. And you won't hear it like you can't make difference between the Yanny or Laurel

 

[Lucky90210 741]

Sorry she sings AMERICAN LIFE!

[larenaldise 2,212]

20 hours ago, TonyMontana said:

 but American LIE ! 

Just read that on a forum and me and others members are in a state of shock because we have never ever noticed that ! 

You're right, and it makes sense if you hear "I leave the american dream" instead of I live the american dream. but we (french) knows double senses in lyrics, and that's not the case for so many people around the world (no offense)

[larenaldise 2,212]

personnally, I always think hollywood have the same double sense :

everybody comes to hollywood = everybody cums to hollywood

it makes sense with the next lyrics (they wanna make it in the neighborhood)

[Ian 2,262]

dude, I had to change my name

[CYSMM 673]

43 minutes ago, larenaldise said:

personnally, I always think hollywood have the same double sense :

everybody comes to hollywood = everybody cums to hollywood

it makes sense with the next lyrics (they wanna make it in the neighborhood)

This would make sense if the first demo of Hollywood is from the Erotica era as I read once 

[MaDöner Kebab 6,877]

I’ve also read on a forum that the songs Rain and Wash All Over Me were about sex. 🤡

Sometimes it’s better to not give into conspiracy theories no matter how "plausible" they sound. 

But to elaborate a bit on this theory. If we analyse the stylistic aspects of the song, it’s obvious she sings “American LIFE / I LIVE the American dream”. The use of LIFE and LIVE in the two lines that follow each other is a stylistic device. She says that she is living the American dream, the American way of life. She is one of the people used to exemplify that it is possible. However, she says that is an illusion because it comes with a bunch of downsides and that it isn’t something that is achieved easily (which she elaborates on in the final song, Easy Ride).

It makes no sense to use the word “lie” because she does not say that the American dream/life is a lie, since she herself is indeed living it. What she does say, is that it’s only half the truth because it comes with a lot of work and sacrifice and that it’s essentially a distraction from the fucked up things that are really going on in the states.

[MerBoy13 577]

Madonna does love double entendres and she has done numerous songs through her career I'm not surprised tbh 

[Redha DBL 7,337]

24 minutes ago, MPowered said:

I’ve also read on a forum that the songs Rain and Wash All Over Me were about sex. 🤡

Sometimes it’s better to not give into conspiracy theories no matter how "plausible" they sound. 

But to elaborate a bit on this theory. If we analyse the stylistic aspects of the song, it’s obvious she sings “American LIFE / I LIVE the American dream”. The use of LIFE and LIVE in the two lines that follow each other is a stylistic device. She says that she is living the American dream, the American way of life. She is one of the people used to exemplify that it is possible. However, she says that is an illusion because it comes with a bunch of downsides and that it isn’t something that is achieved easily (which she elaborates on in the final song, Easy Ride).

It makes no sense to use the word “lie” because she does not say that the American dream/life is a lie, since she herself is indeed living it. What she does say, is that it’s only half the truth because it comes with a lot of work and sacrifice and that it’s essentially a distraction from the fucked up things that are really going on in the states.

We do not get the same message at all then, cause to me she's not LIVING the american LIFE, she's LEAVING the american LIE. The second meaning is much more Madonna to me, the first one is way too obvious. Madonna loves double meaning and play on words and she's a genius in using it.

[Roy 7,613]

6 minutes ago, TonyMontana said:

We do not get the same message at all then, cause to me she's not LIVING the american LIFE, she's LEAVING the american LIE. The second meaning is much more Madonna to me, the first one is way too obvious. Madonna loves double meaning and play on words and she's a genius in using it.

Like "Like a Prayer." Double entendres are her thing. 😁

[Prayer 14,358]

"American Lie, I leave the American Dream" would fit perfectly with her state of mind then (remember it was peak Britishdonna) and the rest of the album, actually.

I don't know. We discussed it in the other thread about it and there's no way to truly know, in the cappella the chorus parts are chopped by Mirwais and sounds like "lie" but in the backing vocals she sings "life" clearly. And then, in the live performances she sings sometimes "lie" and others "life".

So that's it. It's "American Life" but she plays with the double entendre, I guess. Personally, I like to think she plays with the "life"/"lie" concept, it adds more depth to the song.

[Blue Jean 15,252]

12 hours ago, MPowered said:

Actually, that is a mastering issue. Sharp sounds like F and S sometimes get filtered out. The same thing happened in the MDNA version of Nobody Knows Me. It sounds as if she was saying:

I had so many lie
Sin I wa a chil
and I realie
How many times I've die

 

I agree. Although it’s not mastering, it’s the treatment of the vocals in the production. But the point remains.

[larenaldise 2,212]

On 7/25/2022 at 1:22 AM, TonyMontana said:

 but American LIE ! 

Just read that on a forum and me and others members are in a state of shock because we have never ever noticed that ! 

 

31 minutes ago, Prayer said:

"American Lie, I leave the American Dream" would fit perfectly with her state of mind then (remember it was peak Britishdonna) and the rest of the album, actually.

I don't know. We discussed it in the other thread about it and there's no way to truly know, in the cappella the chorus parts are chopped by Mirwais and sounds like "lie" but in the backing vocals she sings "life" clearly. And then, in the live performances she sings sometimes "lie" and others "life".

So that's it. It's "American Life" but she plays with the double entendre, I guess. Personally, I like to think she plays with the "life"/"lie" concept, it adds more depth to the song.

and if you make echo to the last rap sentence, it fits very well : And I just realized that nothing is what it seems.

that's the definition of lie, right? ;)

 

 

[RUADJAI 14,957]

1 hour ago, TonyMontana said:

We do not get the same message at all then, cause to me she's not LIVING the american LIFE, she's LEAVING the american LIE. The second meaning is much more Madonna to me, the first one is way too obvious. Madonna loves double meaning and play on words and she's a genius in using it.

She literally says "I'm just living out the American dream..." in the rap.

 

Now, I wouldn't put it past Mirwais to cut off the chorus vocal to make it so she said "Lie". But she says life in the deeper backing vocals, so it wasn't sang "Lie" initially. It was perhaps a purposeful manipulation after she sang "Life", or perhaps just happenstance because Mirwais likes to chop things up and thats what it sounds like. Cause "I live the American dreeeee" means absolutely nothing. 

[Nahual 599]

I clearly hear the word "life" not "lie". The F sound is pretty easy to detect, at least to my ears. But the song is still a bop apart from the rap section. 

[lucasciccone 4,221]

https://www.madonna.com/discography/lyrics/93

I guess we can take this as the official lyrics. If she really sings "Lie", why would they put "Life" in the lyrics?

 

[chaosmen1984mk 798]

1 hour ago, MPowered said:

I’ve also read on a forum that the songs Rain and Wash All Over Me were about sex. 🤡

Sometimes it’s better to not give into conspiracy theories no matter how "plausible" they sound. 

 

True. Other songs that come to mind where it might seem that the lyrics have another more extreme meaning than it really appears are:

Material girl : Most think that it is about a flirtatious, empowered and ambitious woman but the most extreme believe that it is the anthem of prostitutes.

Liquid Love: Every time I listen to her I feel like she's singing about her lover's semen: “Can't hold it, control it, It runs from my touch, It slips through my fingers, The taste of it lingers …”

God is love: Here I don't know if she is praising or denying God because in certain parts her criticism of this fantasy character that many deluded believe really exists is evident.

Devil Pray: At first I loved thinking that it was a prayer to the devil and in this way it gave more strength to the theory that is talked about so much that Madonna is satanic but then she said in an interview that it is about addiction to drugs drugs of certain people who use this medium to feel that they are close to God (??????), although to be honest, who would publicly admit that it is a song about devil worship without their career being harmed since this is still a taboo subject in our society.

And there are many others like Holy Water that talks about the sexual abstinence of nuns or Like a Virgin, etc., which lend themselves to various interpretations although only Madonna knows the true meaning of these songs and may never admit them in public so as not to hurt susceptibilities and end up giving an unbelievable explanation of the lyrics of her songs as happened with Devil Pray

 

[Ziploc 2,566]

7 hours ago, EgoRod said:

I don't think is about being stupid.

But she put the lyrics in the  booklet and they say Life.

Then you have auditory illusions like the McGurk Effect:

 and also the F sound is a fricative, it hasn't got  a sound like a K or a T. Going along the E it can become a really soft pronunciation or even mute.

And Mirwais distortions and twitching of high pitch makes it even harder to get in detail.

I personally hear Life  and I wouldn't doubt she plays with the double entendre of the two meanings, Like in god/gun control.

But I wouldn't go as far as saying she sings Lie, just a soft Life. And you won't hear it like you can't make difference between the Yanny or Laurel

 

This kind of stuff fascinates me. 'See something with your own eyes' - how you wouldn't believe to exist or be true if you hadn't seen it. Yet your brain is doing all this additional processing from different sensory inputs and taking artistic licence with it. It's like how your nose is right in the middle of your face but you rarely notice it. Makes you wonder how much you can rely on what you see, hear & feel.

Back to American Light, here's a few other songs that suffer the same issue:

Lucky Bra - not about celestial bodies, actually refers to fortuitous lingerie

Papa Don't Screech - pregnant? Lol no, just a song about her noisy pet toucan, Papa

You Must Love Meat - Eva Peron was a big meat lover ;) 

[Blue Jean 15,252]

12 hours ago, TonyMontana said:

Just out curiosity, those who says it's stupid to believe she sings American lie in the chorus, can you elaborate how it's supid ? I ask seriously cause in my opinion singing American lie makes even more sense with the message of the song and it's a brilliant subtility that a few artists would do. It makes so much sense that i have a hard time understanding how people couldn't even consider for a second her line says American lie instead of American life and reject that idea without even a though. Now if someone who refuses to believe the lyric says Lie would make an elaborated answer as for why it is impossible that would be welcome 😁

I don’t think it’s a stupid suggestion. I have no reason so far to believe it’s true though. Nothing you’ve said proves it, it is still only a theory. And a lot of things point to it not being the case including the lyrics printed everywhere. I don’t feel she had any reason to hide the word “lie” because the entire song points to that sentiment anyway. So if she wanted to call the song American Lie she would have.
 

A lot of people also are convinced Michael Jackson’s Heal the World says “make a better place fuck you and fuck me” because one of kids in the choir supposedly sang that as a prank. When words aren’t pronounced clearly it is difficult to prove either way.