Rise is one of the most significant work of art that Skillet ever produced. Rise was the second promotional single of the eighth studio album ‘Rise’ and it was released on 14th May 2013.
Skillet is known for producing meaningful music. They just don’t write lyrics off of mundane things like sex, women, drugs etc. There are always deep thoughts and messages behind the music that they produce.
Rise was very underrated in my opinion. It is one of the best songs that Skillet has ever produced but should’ve gained a lot more attention and recognition than it did or rather has till now.
The song was written based on the typical lifestyle of the teens growing up in USA. USA even though the name suggests of an advanced civilization and economic world power has its own problems to deal with.
The citizens have their own problems to deal with. It is not a heaven for the people living inside it. Teens come across several problems like bullying, mass shootings, depression, addictions, societal pressure to name a few.
These things happen to a certain extent in all nations not just America, and its a problem faced by everyone growing up regardless of where they are.
Rise is the story of a typical American teen coming into adulthood and facing the massive world problems. Facing world problems as an adult is different from when you’re growing up and under someone else’s care.
All of a sudden, you realize that the world is a dangerous place. It’s dark and scary, there’s acts of God happening, there’s war, there are all these terrible things, and you thinking, ‘How can I have hope in this place?’
But at the same time, you also think, ‘Even moving all those huge problems aside, I look at my own life and I’m not even comfortable with the things I can change. I’m fighting with my parents, my parents have split up, I’m here in this home getting yelled at all the time that I’m never gonna be good enough, and I’m starting to believe that I’m never gonna be good enough. I constantly fail myself, and I just want to have a reason to live. I want to matter, and I want to know that my life counts for something.’
So the story is basically about rising up out of your downtrodden life, rising up from that place where you feel like a failure, rising up to be comfortable being yourself, to stand up for what you believe in.
It’s not about pleasing your friends, it’s not about doing what’s cool; it’s about being who you are and being comfortable with that.
And lastly, in the grand scheme of it all is, if I can be somebody I am comfortable being, maybe I can even rise up and help change the world. Can one person make a difference? Can one person actually matter?
John Cooper
Rise is about finding your place in the society. It is about taking problems head on and moving forward in life. Growing up you have to realize that no one is coming to save you and you have to get responsible for yourself.
It is about being authentic with oneself and upholding one’s values and principles against the pressure by peers and society in general. It may involve disagreements and falling out with friends.
The world has a lot of problems. Life has a lot of problems, but one has to grow up in the midst of these situations. One has to find something worth fighting for and keep working towards it.
When one moves on a mission, one faces challenges that one would’ve never thought would ever occur but they do. But one must never give up when faced with adversity and that is what life is about.
There are good things in life worth living for and one must work towards them. This is the beauty of life. There are treasures but one has to go through tough paths to get them. If it were easy, then the accomplishments would loose their value.
So, that was my take on the song. Its an amazing song to listen to. Let me know your opinion in the comments.
