Released: 2019 • Features: Swae Lee
“Sunflower – Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” by Post Malone and Swae Lee orbits around the themes of emotional turbulence in the context of a relationship. It’s a powerful commentary on the volatility that often comes with love, conveying the conflicting emotions of desire, fear, and the constant struggle to keep the flame burning amidst increasing uncertainty.
Let’s break this down, verse by verse. In the opening, Post Malone spits out, “Needless to say, I keep her in check / She was a bad-bad, nevertheless.” Here, he’s highlighting a typical bad girl allure, brooding about this female who’s bad news yet fascinating. “Callin’ it quits now, baby, I’m a wreck,” suggests a push-pull dynamic, with Malone admitting his emotional wreckage due to a tentative breakup.
Swae Lee then takes over the mic with, “Thinkin’ in a bad way, losin’ your grip / Screamin’ at my face, baby, don’t trip.” The image he conjures is one of a couple locked in a messy emotional standoff, painting a picture of chaotic love where feelings aren’t just black and white.
His lines “She wanna ride me like a cruise / And I’m not tryna lose” adds an intimate layer to their relationship, showing how love, just like a wild ride, can be thrilling and scary at the same time. His fear of loss reflects how much he values the connection.
The chorus underlines the sunflower metaphor, representing a beacon of hope and warmth in the relationship. “Then you’re left in the dust / Unless I stuck by ya / You’re the sunflower / I think your love would be too much,” signifies a pendulum of emotions, oscillating between fear of abandonment and an overwhelming love. This sunflower metaphor expresses a promise of sticking around, for better or worse.
In the bridge, Swae Lee conveys a poignant dilemma. Every time he’s leaving, there’s resistance. The lines, “Fightin’ for my trust and you won’t back down / Even if we gotta risk it all right now,” show a relationship teetering on the brink, and the struggle to salvage it, mirroring their tumultuous emotional landscape.
The complexity of the relationship and emotions gets a nod when he raps, “You don’t wanna be alone (alone) / I know I always come and go (and go) / But it’s out of my control.” It’s a confession of his shortcomings and inability to offer consistent emotional presence, an aspect that often causes strife in relationships.
Overall, “Sunflower – Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse” explores the ups and downs of love. With its catchy hooks and heartfelt lyrics, it captures the paradoxes in relationships – the desire for closeness clashing with the fear of vulnerability and the ecstasy of love wrestling with the pain of possible loss. It’s not all sunshine and roses; it’s real, raw, and unfiltered – just like the best hip-hop should be.
