• Home
  • LIVE
  • INFO
  • HEAR
  • SHOP
  • BLOG
  • MEDIA RESOURCES
  • PATREON
  • LYRICS
  • SONGWRITER SANCTUARY
  • PRESS
  • QULYN JOURNALS
  • CONTACT
    • CONTENT CREATION AND DESIGN
    • CUSTOM SONGWRITING
    • HOUSE CONCERTS
    • FESTIVALS AND CONFERENCES
    • SONGWRITING WORKSHOPS
    • WEDDINGS AND PRIVATE EVENTS
    • SPEAKING EVENTS
  • CHOOSING RIVER
  • Dead Mom Talking
  • Bodies of Work
  • THE LOVEBIRDS
LINDSAY WHITE

THIS JUST IN

Behind the Song... Shrug and a Grin

4/25/2017

0 Comments

 
Here's a sample of a song that was written for the explicit purpose of processing some very personal feelings about a very specific experience. Probably not a song I'll ever play out because the verses are too specific to be relatable, but I think everyone can relate to the chorus. We all have to go through life figuring out how to let go of pain and anger. Sometimes it feels better to just throw up a white flag and peace out on a situation that doesn't feel right. Other times it feels more worthwhile to stick around and see what can be salvaged. Either way, you just gotta go with your gut. 
Lyrics:
1. Right this way ma'am to the finish line

I was never in your lane, you were never in mine
Do what you gotta do
Girl go get that win
Did you do it the right way?
Honey let's not pretend

CHORUS
sometimes you must choose to lose
with a shrug and a grin

2. Come with me friend to the starting line
You know I got your back, I hope you still got mine
Do what we gotta do to begin again
I won't fight for a prize 
But I'll fight for a friend
​

CHORUS
Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song... Nothing Kind of Day

4/11/2017

0 Comments

 
This one's pretty self-explanatory. A little love letter to my wife for being just the absolute best thing a person could ever come home to.
Lyrics:
​Ain’t nothing new today

Ain’t nothing profound to say
Nothing of consequence achieved
Nothing that I lost was retrieved

CHORUS
But I came home to you

And you came home to me
That’s more than a lot of folks can say
There’s something to being with you
At the end of a nothing kinda day

Ain’t nothing crossed off the list
Ain’t nothing worth my unclenched fist 
Nothing made work more than a check
Nothing made my head less of a wreck

CHORUS

Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song... The Dot Above the i

4/7/2017

2 Comments

 
My former partner and bandmate recently had an article come out for her solo record, and I objectively observed how 6 jam-packed years of shared experiences with her was so easily whittled down to a few sentences. It didn't make me feel sad as much as it made me feel so distant from a place I was once neck-deep in. I started thinking about how that kind of stuff happens over and over again in our lifetimes. How stories we're so immersed in become tiny little footnotes. How each skin we shed is full of so many experiences that are just left to die in order to grow new skin. So much gets left out in order to make room for more. Who's the real author? Are we writers or our own destiny, is it fate, God, a mix? That's sort of what I'm alluding to with the whole "dot above the i" thing.
Lyrics:
When the novel becomes a chapter
When the chapter becomes a line
When the story you’ve been chasing after
Becomes once upon a time
CHORUS
Tear it up and let it fly
Tell it to somebody in the sky
Punctured and punctuated by
The dot above the i
When a friendship becomes a footnote
When a hug becomes parentheses
When the story you thought you wrote
Becomes whose words were these
CHORUS
Picture
2 Comments

Behind the Song... Would You Want Me?

3/21/2017

0 Comments

 
A simple little self-reflective song that speaks to the unrealistic expectations we put on ourselves. Sorry, only audio for this one!
Lyrics:

If I wore all the bells
If I blew all the whistles
If I drew the parallels
If I called my officials
Would you want me? Would you want me?
If I cashed a bigger check
If I cooked a better dinner
If I slept more or less
If I went to bed a winner
Would you want me? Would you want me?
If I lost all the weight
If I started medication 
If I stopped to meditate
If I understood creation
Would you want me? Would you want me?
Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song... Pros and Cons

3/14/2017

0 Comments

 
This one is kind of about how you (or people consoling you) try to rationalize and stay positive in grief. I try to tell myself to feel better because a lot people have it a lot worse. For example, I often think "don't be too sad about all that debt; some people don't even have a credit card" or "don't be too sad you had a shitty relationship with your mom as an adult; at least you had a good childhood and a lot of people don't even get that." Problem is, sometimes this makes you feel worse. It's like adding a thick layer of guilt to a grief sandwich.​ Soooo, I've been feeling some of the depression more now since the initial shock has worn off. I know (I hope) I'll climb out of that but it can be more comfortable and comforting to hang out with the familiar/negative stuff than exert the energy required to find the positive. Depression contradicts with all the things we learn about trying to be a good, virtuous person, so I leaned on some imagery about Justice, Prudence, Courage, etc. to try and illustrate how they don't quite matter or even make a whole lot of sense in my current reality. Grief/loss is a pretty prevalent theme in my songwriting, but it's just extra raw right now. Hence the crying.
Lyrics
​
1. I’ve got nothing left I can balance on
That lady with the blindfold is gone
Her scale and her sword have nothing more to say
It was just us then, it’s just me now
Where’s the justice in time running out
I’m trying to transcend but it sinks further in every day
CHOURUS
So I keep company with well-known cons
I’m confident they’re my confidants
And the pros won’t speak to me
They are prone to secrecy
And I don’t know if I’ll ever get through it
Cause I’ve been the only one swearing them to it
2. There’s no wisdom now, no prudence here
If I’m reckless or cautious, I really don’t care
This snake and this mirror just slithered nearer to prey
I don’t feel courage and I’m not in control
I can’t produce faith and I won’t be consoled
And I’m losing all hope that I’ll ever know better todays
Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song... Once Smitten, Twice Shy

3/1/2017

0 Comments

 
Here's a quick little thing I wrote based on one of my friends who has a monster crush on someone but is too painfully shy to do anything about it. I thought geez, that sounds agonizing. I'm bad at many things (including writing songs in ten minutes), but flirting usually comes pretty easy and thankfully helped me snag a hot little wifey.
Lyrics:
​
1. Asking you to think of me sounds so absurd
Girl I could never work up the nerve
Your lightning smiles and thunder eyes are elements I crave  
But I could never bring myself to brave
CHORUS 
Cooked up some big plans for you and I
They’re burning up like a pie in the sky
We're not getting anywhere but goodbye
Once smitten I’m twice shy
2. I could be the one to give love like you deserve 
But honey I could never work up the nerve
Dreams of us superfluous in this reality
Being conscious of you made a coward of me
CHORUS
Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song... Lights Out

2/21/2017

0 Comments

 
Now that my mom is gone, I'm struggling with reconciling our estranged relationship all over again. In her last 6 months or so, I truly accepted the fact we were never going to be close as we both hoped. Since she died, I think I have to process the same thing, only this time I have to accept that we will never be physically close again. It's a whole new ballgame where I don't feel entitled to my own grief, like I don't deserve to miss her as much as I do. She had a very tough life and scrapped her way through it with such strength and fearlessness and conviction in her faith. It was such an incredible armor for her but it was also the barrier between us. I'll save the rest for therapy but here are the lyrics.
Lyrics:
​
1. Her life was a boxing ring
She never took off
Her gloves 
She never stopped swinging
Not even for love
CHORUS
From the very first round
To the very last bout
She boxed her way in
She boxed her way out
I never got too close
I never knew how
Everything’s different
With the lights out
2. Her faith was a lonely home
She never took off
From that place
She never looked out the window
Not even to see my face
CHORUS
From the very first brick
To the very last grout
She boxed her way in
She boxed her way out
I never got too close
I never knew how
Everything's different
With the lights out
Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song... Net & Key II

1/30/2017

0 Comments

 
Happy to share the story behind this new little ditty written in honor of my friends Nikki and Janet, and their new little bundle of joy who will be arriving on planet Earth very shortly! I wrote the original "Net & Key" (a play off their names) for their wedding a few years back, so I decided to continue with the theme. The lyrics are pretty straightforward and simple since I was going for a lullaby feel. I just wanted to highlight how sometimes kids grow up to absorb so many of their parents' traits, yet they still develop completely unique personalities. I also wanted to express how happy I am that Nikki and Janet are the kind of people who I know will commit to parenting with total grace and support for each other, and total love and encouragement for their child. Can't wait to meet the baby bean!
Lyrics:
1. Maybe you’ll like telling jokes
Maybe you’ll like reading poems
Maybe you’ll like something we don’t

We’ll probably mess something up
Like misplace your best sippy cup
If it gets hard enough to give up, we won’t

CHORUS
We’re building a home for you
A place you can grow into 
Anything you want to be
You will be safe with us
We’ll earn your faith, your love, your trust
Give you our heart, net, and key

2. Maybe you’ll cheer for the Bears
Maybe speak French, eat Eclairs
Maybe you’ll do something brand new 

We’re gonna learn as you grow
We’re gonna teach what we know
If you wonder who loves you the most, we do
Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song... My Be(a)st

1/20/2017

0 Comments

 
The other day I was looking through the "Notes" app on my phone and saw one that said "Play dead for a bear, fight a squid." That's literally all it said. I had a long wtf moment, and then I remembered a conversation I had a few years ago with a neighbor who was listing ways to survive animal attacks. I'm about 99% sure alcohol and/or weed was involved in this conversation, which probably made me think it was hilarious, which probably led to me writing down two phrases before being distracted with something else. Years later I'm sitting on my couch, guitar in hand, idea in mind, Googling about wild animal attacks. You know that whole "you're your own worst enemy" thing? That's pretty much me in a nutshell, so that's what I was going for in this song. I wrote a similarly-themed tune called Hunting Season a million years ago. I'd like to think I'm making some progress because at least this song ends on a slightly positive note. Maybe in another 10 years I'll write an even more positive version, so stick around for that.
Lyrics

1. back away from a snake
play dead for a bear
howl at a wolf
climb a tree for a deer

i know all the protocol when something wild’s coming at ya
got no clue what to do when i’m the attacker

CHORUS
do i run do I hide
do i dig a big hole and climb down or 
stand my ground and lock eyes
do I demand apologies or do I apologize
when it comes to my beast
I’m just doing my best to survive

2. eat for a cold
starve for a flu
ice for a sprain
take an aspirin or two

i know these remedies for the sick and bed-ridden
got no clue what to do when I’m the affliction

CHORUS
Picture
0 Comments

Behind the Song...Don't Overthink It

1/17/2017

0 Comments

 
This song is what happens when you have 2ish chords and 3ish beers. All last week, I kept running into the phrase "don't overthink it" so I thought I'd sit down and figure out how to write a song around it. The end result mimics my typical anxiety-driven thought pattern. I'm constantly telling myself to just chill out and be in the moment, but somehow I find myself surrounded by a swarm of worry and doubt and endless questioning. It builds and builds until I have to tell myself to chill out all over again. I kind of dig the chorus and first verse, but was stuck on the last part. So I went out for a few beers with my friends and then came home to write the shitty slurry second half. I might revisit that part. Or maybe I'll just leave it alone and not overthink it. 
Lyrics:
​
CHORUS
don't overthink it, don't overdo it
sometimes it's good enough to get up and get through it
you don't have to kick every single wall down
sometimes it's good enough to get up and walk around

1. what's all this talk of getting on the saddle
what's all this talk of climbing back on the horse
what if the saddle's not compatible
what if the horse threw you off your course

what if the thing that you need currently
is to stop indulging worry so repeatedly
question marks circle like sharks in your anxiety
but their fins are only figments of the swim you see

CHORUS

2. what's all this talk of persevering,
all this outrageous talk of getting ahead
If persevering's too severe today,
it was courageous just to get out of bed

what if the thing that you need currently
is to stop indulging worry so repeatedly
question marks circle like sharks in your anxiety
but their fins are only figments of the swim you see

CHORUS
Picture
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Archives

    May 2025
    August 2024
    April 2024
    February 2024
    November 2023
    September 2023
    July 2023
    May 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    July 2022
    April 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    October 2021
    May 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    April 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    October 2016
    May 2015
    May 2014
    April 2014
    November 2011

    Categories

    All
    Amazon
    Anxiety
    Behind The Song
    Book Club
    Dear Diary
    Disabilty
    EBooks
    Family
    Feminism
    Flyers
    Lady Brain Collective
    Lady Brain Presents
    LGBT
    Lights Out
    Lyrics
    Patreon
    Postpartum
    Pregnancy
    Press
    Qulyn
    Shows
    Social Justice
    Songwriter Sanctuary
    Songwriting
    Sunday Best
    The Game
    Tunesday

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.
  • Home
  • LIVE
  • INFO
  • HEAR
  • SHOP
  • BLOG
  • MEDIA RESOURCES
  • PATREON
  • LYRICS
  • SONGWRITER SANCTUARY
  • PRESS
  • QULYN JOURNALS
  • CONTACT
    • CONTENT CREATION AND DESIGN
    • CUSTOM SONGWRITING
    • HOUSE CONCERTS
    • FESTIVALS AND CONFERENCES
    • SONGWRITING WORKSHOPS
    • WEDDINGS AND PRIVATE EVENTS
    • SPEAKING EVENTS
  • CHOOSING RIVER
  • Dead Mom Talking
  • Bodies of Work
  • THE LOVEBIRDS