“Come to Life” is the twenty-second track on Kanye West’s 2021 album ‘DONDA.’ In the song, Kanye sings about wishing he had another chance at life to do some things differently. The moody song has a very personal touch possibly talking about his ex-wife Kim Kardashian.
‘Donda’ is Kanye West’s tenth studio album released on August 29, 2021, after being teased and delayed multiple times. Kanye West held two listening parties for the album at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta leading up to the album release, and the third party in Chicago.
Early 2021, Kim Kardashian revealed that she is considering ending her marriage to Kanye West after growing tired of “extravagance” and having “no one to share life with.” Although rumors leading up to the ‘DONDA’ release seem to confirm their divorce, the news has changed since the album release. It is also rumored that Kim Kardashian is now “deeply conflicted” about a life without Kanye for herself as well as her kids.
Listen to “Come to Life” by Kanye West
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Kanye West “Come to Life” Lyrics Meaning and Song Review
Chorus-1
In the chorus of the song, Kanye West sounds pressed by everything going on in his life. Although he is at the top of his career right now, his personal life seems to be falling apart. Once you do have your career buckled down, it becomes less of a priority. At this point in life, it seems as if God and Ye’s family are bigger priorities for him. His faith is something he has control of. His family is not as much.
Kanye questions us if we ever wish we had a restart button in life?! A chance to do everything or that one thing right in your life. How things would have changed if you did not take that one decision.
Ye also seems to talk about an uncle and an aunt, where the uncle ends up in prison. This breaks down the aunt so she locks herself in her home, both physically and emotionally. This ‘uncle’ could be a reference to Kanye himself, where ending up in the pen would refer to him being in the studio all the time working on music. Aunt, being Kim Kardashian, may have had to shut herself down to the world at her home. According to some sources, this in fact happened in real life, leading up to the ‘DONDA’ album release, and is one reason why Kim Kardashian is considering a divorce.
Verse 1
Kanye West talks about his dark times in association with the night.
Don’t you wish the night would go numb?
I’ve been feelin’ low for so long
Ye talks about not being able to find love for a long time. Maybe things have not been so smooth with Kim in recent times. He is most likely regretting whatever decisions he made that resulted in them falling apart in this manner.
Mad when she home
Sad when she gone
It looks as if Kanye and Kim had problems leading up to this announcement of the divorce. Angry when they were together and sad when she was not around. They have been doing this dance for some time, culminating in the ‘DONDA’ album release.
Kanye West started living at the Mercedes-Benz Stadium to fully focus on the album after his first Livestream of the album.
Ye’s stars all seem to align in life, from career to fame to money to everything in between. Maybe the only star that is misaligned is his love life. He thanks God for everything He has given him.
Pre-chorus
In these lyrics, Kanye questions himself if all his prayers have come to life. Some he had to work extremely hard towards and some he found along the way. Some, and maybe ones that he considers the most important, may have slipped from his grasp along the way. Are the end results what he wanted? Does he want a reset now that he has everything except for that one thing he needs?!
Chorus-2
In these lyrics, Kanye seems to regret some of the actions he has taken in his life–or rather actions he has not taken.
Took your thoughts and penciled ’em in
Should’ve wrote ’em down in pen
Maybe Kim Kardashian had some feedback about how to better their life together. Ye took the advice, but could not make them materialize. Something written in pencil is rather temporary than something written in ink. Ye think if he had actioned on these devices, he could have saved his marriage.
Kanye believes the way to make things ‘come to life’ is through taking action on his plans. This mantra worked for his other endeavors.
Verse 2
In the second and final verse of the song, Kanye professes his love for his ‘ex-wife’ Kim Kardashian. He knows she is the main source of strength and life in him.
Kanye also mentions his daughter North West, saying that he brought gifts to her–a pair of Nikes. Kanye West works with Adidas exclusively, even with his Yeezy brand. However, in this song, he leaves out business from his personal life. If his daughter wants Nikes, he will give her Nikes. He realizes the importance of keeping business and personal life separate.
Throughout all this emotional trauma, Ye knows that God still watches over him. He is free, in a sense. But is he happy?
Let us hear what you think about this song in the comments below. Check out the complete lyrics on Genius.
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