Broken Home
Producer
They would yell, they would scream, they were fighting it out
She would hope, she would pray, she was waiting it out
Holding onto a dream while she watches these walls fall down
Sharp words like knives, they were cutting her down
Shattered glass like the past, it's a memory now
Holding onto a dream while she watches these walls fall down
[Chorus: Calum]
Hey, mum, hey, dad, when did this end?
Where did you lose your happiness?
I'm here alone inside of this broken home
Who is right? Who's wrong? Who really cares?
The fault, the blame, the pain's still there
I'm here alone inside of this broken home
This broken home
[Verse 2: Calum, All, Calum & Ashton]
Wrote it down on the walls, she was screamin' it out
Made it clear she's still here, are you listenin' now?
Just a ghost in the halls feelin' empty, they're vacant now (Oh)
All the battles, all the wars, all the times that you've fought
She's the scar, she's the bruises, she's the pain that you brought
There was life, there was love like a light and it's fading out
[Chorus: Luke & Calum, Ashton]
Hey, mum, hey, dad, when did this end?
Where did you lose your happiness?
I'm here alone inside of this broken home
Who's right? Who's wrong? Who really cares?
The fault, the blame, the pain's still there
I'm here alone inside of this broken home
This broken home
You've gotta let it go
You're losin' all your hope
Nothin' left to hold
Locked out in the cold
You painted memories
Then washed out all the scenes
I'm stuck in-between
A nightmare and lost dreams
[Breakdown: Michael]
Hey, mum, hey, dad, when did this end?
Where did you lose your happiness?
I'm here alone inside of this broken home
[Chorus: Luke & Calum, Ashton, Calum]
Hey, mum, hey, dad, when did this end?
Where did you lose your happiness?
I'm here alone inside of this broken home (Broken home)
Who's right? Who's wrong? Who really cares?
The fault, the blame, the pain's still there
I'm here alone inside of this broken home
This broken home
About
“Broken Home” is a power ballad about the emotional impact a disintegrating marriage has on a couple’s teen daughter.
It’s the 12th track on the deluxe version of 5 Seconds of Summer’s 2015 album Sounds Good Feels Good.
The song was co-written with Joel and Benji Madden of Good Charlotte.
In an interview with Fuse, producer John Feldmann revealed that the song’s theme caused some debate about the song’s authenticity.
Other than Ashton, the three guys have parents who are still together. Ashton has never met his father. Ashton really connected into the theme. “We’re saying something with this song, it’s going to connect with the audience, at least 50% of our audience come from broken homes. We’re actually taking a stand.” The other guys are loyal and family-driven and sweet, so they were like, “What are our parents going to think about us singing about a broken home when we don’t come from broken homes? How authentic is it?” It was a two-month debate.
Q&A
Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning
In a 2015 interview with Fuse producer John Feldmann said:
That was probably the last song we wrote. Benji came in–he’s had a lot of adversity in his life, with his parents splitting up and the alcoholic father and the co-dependent mother. He came up with the idea of writing a song about a broken home.
Other than Ashton, the three guys have parents who are still together. Ashton has never met his father. Ashton really connected into the theme. “We’re saying something with this song, it’s going to connect with the audience, at least 50% of our audience come from broken homes. We’re actually taking a stand.” The other guys are loyal and family-driven and sweet, so they were like, “What are our parents going to think about us singing about a broken home when we don’t come from broken homes? How authentic is it?” It was a two-month debate.
This is a song, maybe more than any other on this album, that is going to help kids. Michael and I wrote the bridge together, facing each other, McCartney-Lennon style. I get goosebumps whenever Luke comes in on the second chorus.
Writers Zakk Cervini and Matt Pauling also said:
Zakk: This is my favorite song that they’ve ever done. The first chorus is all Calum singing, and in the second chorus when Luke sings up an octave that just gives me the chills. I’ve cried multiple times listening to this song.
Something like 50 percent of marriages end in divorce these days. This song is just such a powerful thing for kids to listen to if their parents are going through something. If you’re going through something, it shows that other people are going through it to and you’re not alone. I also think that guitar riff is definitely something kids are going to want to learn.
Matt: We took a trip to London and we recorded strings with the London Symphony Orchestra on a few songs on the record, and this is one where they just started playing the strings and everyone got chills. It was an incredible moment for everybody.
- 1.Money
- 6.Catch Fire
- 7.Safety Pin
- 9.Vapor
- 10.Castaway
- 12.Broken Home
- 13.Fly Away
- 14.Invisible
- 15.Airplanes
- 16.San Francisco
- 18.Lost In Reality
- 19.Over and Out
- 20.Broken Pieces