My regrets look just like texts I shouldn't send
And I got neighbors, they're more like strangers
We could be friends
I just need a way out
Of my head
I'll do anything for a way out
Of my head
[Verse]
In my own way, this feel like livin'
Some alternate reality
And I was drownin', but now I'm swimmin'
Through stressful waters to relief
Yeah, oh, the things I'd do
To spend a little time in Hell
And what I won't tell you
I'll prolly never even tell myself
Don't you know that sunshine don't feel right
When you inside all day?
I wish it was nice out, but it look like rain
Grey skies are driftin', not livin' forever
They told me it only gets better
[Chorus]
My regrets look just like texts I shouldn't send
And I got neighbors, they're more like strangers
We could be friends
I just need a way out
Of my head
I'll do anything for a way out
Of my head
About
On “Come Back To Earth” Mac provides a cathartic, gentle foundation to begin Swimming. The album’s recurring motifs of self care, self acceptance and personal liberation are introduced through the swimming metaphor.
Mac also establishes the conflict between a new found sense of optimism and his perennial challenges with depression, isolation and addiction.
Mac first teased the song on July 12th, 2018, in an announcement video for Swimming.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
In an interview with Vulture, Miller was asked if Swimming being considered a “breakup record” was frustrating for him—referring to his relationship with singer Ariana Grande that ended in May 2018. He used “Come Back to Earth” as an example of how a song can be perceived differently based on a narrative:
Yeah. Because it’s so much more than that. I’ve been working on this album for two years. It frustrates me that people take something and put it into this small window narrative. But I also understand it. I’m not mad at them for it. It’s kind of like … the story writes itself. How can you expect people to not? I mean, I would love for people to just take the music as just the music. Try and get rid of the outside context. Which is impossible to do, but just try. The reality is, “Come Back to Earth,” the first song on the album was one of the first things I wrote after getting back off tour from Divine Feminine. I made that song in 2016, and I wrote 11 more intros called “Come Back to Earth,” and then I went back to that one. I’m curious … what does a song mean to you now, if you just look at it like that? The other thing that makes me curious is, is it less or more impactful to you? That’s kind of the brain-fuck for me. I’m like, “Okay, is this story that everyone’s putting together … is it a good one?”
Yes, “Come Back to Earth” was certified platinum by the RIAA on September 28, 2023.
- 1.Come Back to Earth
- 4.Perfecto
- 5.Self Care
- 6.Wings
- 7.Ladders
- 8.Small Worlds
- 10.Dunno
- 11.Jet Fuel
- 12.2009
- 13.So It Goes