Breathing Underwater - (Nai Palm) Commentary Songtext
von Hiatus Kaiyote

"Breathing Underwater"
I wrote it as a tribute to Stevie Wonder
Because I was raised with his music
And I owe my musical complexity and understanding to growing up listening to intelligent, soulful music

Lyrically, I wanted a song that
There are so many love songs in life, you know?
It′s kind of the main theme of music, the love songs, romantic ones
There are so many different ways to love and to show love in life
And I wanted to comment on that, essentially

So make a love song about the work that a Tuareg silversmith would put into his life's work
The love that you put into a chamomile tea that you make for your friend that′s really upset
Who's had a really horrible day
Or the love of


There's a verse that says "Wild rose, Jericho sun, arid as stone"
And uh, there′s a plant in Africa called a, "Resurrection plant"
Or a Jericho rose, and they can survive for hundreds of years
Over a hundred years without water, it has to rain once and they blossom in minutes

And, the love of that, that plant laying dormant for so long
And all it takes is the slightest bit of moisture or nurture
And it can blossom, you know?
And people are like that too, you know?

If you ever come across people that are cold or mean to you
Usually they just, everybody just wants to be loved
And it doesn′t have to be, it doesn't have to be romanticly
And so I wanted to make a comment on that

It has a key change
Musically, in the end because Stevie is like right out for that
Yeah, so
It′s a love song
And a, a love song to the world and a tribute to Stevie Wonder