Cover art for Kate by Ben Folds Five
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Kate Lyrics

[Verse 1]
She plays "Wipeout" on the drums
The squirrels and the birds come
Gather around to sing the guitar
Oh, I... Have you got nothing to say?

[Verse 2]
When all words fail, she speaks
Her mixtape's a masterpiece
Walks through the garden
So the roses can see

Oh, I... Have you got nothing to say?

[Pre-Chorus]
And you can see the daisies
In her footsteps

Dandelions (dandelions)
Butterflies (butterflies)

[Chorus]
I wanna be Kate!
Kate!
Kate!
Kate!


[Verse 3]
Every day she wears the same thing
I think she smokes pot
She's everything I want
She's everything I'm not
Oh, I... Have you got nothing to say?
[Pre-Chorus]
She never gets wet
She smiles and it's a rainbow (oh, oh)

And she speaks (and she speaks)
And she breathes (yeah, and she breathes)


[Chorus]
I wanna be Kate!
Kate!
Kate!
Kate!


[Verse 4]
Down by Rosemary and Cameron
She hands out the Bhagavad Gita
I see her around every couple days
I wanna see her so that I can say, "Hey... Kate!"

[Bridge]
Ooh, la la la
Ooh, la la la
Oooh, la la la laa
Doo doo doo doo
Doo doo doo doo

[Pre-Chorus]
She never gets wet
She smiles and it's a rainbow (oh, oh)
You can see (you can see)
I wanna wanna wanna wanna be...
[Chorus]
Kate!
Kate!
Kate!


No, no...

Kate!
Kate!
Kate!


No, no, no, no, no, no...

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Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

What did Ben Folds Five say about "Kate"?
Genius Answer

That’s a song for my ex. She said, ‘I don’t have a name that a song can be written for. Michelle, there’s a name that works well for a song. There’s all kinds of names—Jolene. Not Kate.’ I said, ‘Nope, I can do that.’ She said, ‘What would the melody be?’ And I just said, ‘Kate! Kate! Kate!’

Ben in an interview with People Magazine.

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