Smoke in the air, the city's burnin' down
I wanna speak, but I don't make a sound
Locked in my mind, you're all I think about (Mm)
I wanna save us, but I don't know how
[Chorus]
If we don't love like we used to
If we don't care like we used to
What the hell are we dying for?
If it doesn't cut like it used to
If you're not mine and I'm not yours
What the hell are we dying for?
[Verse 2]
I see it in the news, I see it in your eyes, oh
I try to let you go, then I choke, I change my mind
(Change my mind, ooh)
Let's face thе truth, I'm terrified (Ooh, ooh)
[Chorus]
If we don't lovе like we used to
If we don't care like we used to
What the hell are we dying for?
If it doesn't cut like it used to
If you're not mine and I'm not yours
What the hell are we dying for?
Livin' without you
Is not livin' at all
[Chorus]
If we don't love like we used to
And we don't care like we used to
What the hell are we dying for?
If it doesn't cut like it used to (Doesn't cut)
If you're not mine and I'm not yours (I'm not yours)
What the hell are we dying for?
[Outro]
Livin' without you
Is not livin' at all
Livin' without you (Baby)
Is not livin' at all
So what the hell are we dying for?
About
“WHAT THE HELL ARE WE DYING FOR ?” was announced on June 8th 2023, only about 3 hours prior to its release.
The single’s cover art was also included on the announcement, and it depicts an authentic photograph of the New York City’s landscape, completely engulfed by an orange smoke haze. This smoke is originally from Canada, the singer’s home country, where massive wildfires have been decimating millions of forest acres. This event drastically polluted all of New York City’s air, consequently posing a threat to all its citizens.
The song was written and recorded by Mendes and his friends on the day prior to its release, while they were staying in New York City, and therefore exposed to this hazardous event.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
Started writing this song yesterday morning with my friends in upstate New York & finished it only a few hours ago..felt so important to me to share with you guys in real time.
–via Twitter (June 9, 2023)
“I feel like over the last year and a bit, I’ve just been really struggling in the studio to find my voice and to find myself musically and to even have the courage just to be in the room with writers or step into the booth and sing. I was upstate New York and just on the back end of feeling a lot of things about relationships, about my career, about the environment. I was in the studio and this moment of just deep frustration came over me and I finally started to feel this inspiration come. Honestly, in that moment, it felt like it was the first time I felt that in a year and a half in the studio. I think I had this feeling of urgency, this feeling of honestly excitement, this feeling of connection — this feeling of this is me right now, this is how I feel right now. […] I think we were up there in New York, the sky was orange, the air was thick and the words were flowing and this happened. In hindsight, it was scary. I woke up in the morning and I was like, “Wow, what did I do?” I think it was a good thing for me to do for myself. I had to dive into the deep end. Otherwise, I would’ve sat there for years questioning myself… and I think it wraps around to just, what is it that we care about in life? Who do we care about? What’s worth it? Why do we show up the way we do?
–via Billboard – Zane Lowe (June 12, 2023)
