Katy Perry “The One that got Away”
This week, I wanted to do a follow up on last week’s feature “Katy Perry’s Musical Influences”. As everyone knows, music influences language and culture. Katy’s songs are chart toppers and therefore ‘talk to’ a very large North American and International audience. When people like a song they listen to it over and over. The words and expressions become more popular with mainstream culture. So, let’s take a look at Katy Perry’s lyrics to her musical hit “The One That Got Away!”
Part One
Now to make it a bit more fun, listen to the video and try to fill in the blanks with the missing word(s). After that, try the North American pop culture quiz related to this song.
Lyrics - The One That Got Away
Summer after high school when we first met
We 1__________in your Mustang to Radio head
And on my 18th birthday we got that chain tattoos
Used to steal your parents' liquor and climb to the roof
Talk about our future like we 2__________
Never plan that one day I'd be losing you
And in another life I would be your girl
We keep all our promises, be us against the world
And in other life I would make you stay
So I don't have to say you were 3________
4________
I was dreaming you were my Johnny Cash
Never one, we got the other, we made a pact
Sometimes when I miss you, I put those records on, whoa
Someone said you had your 5________removed
Saw you downtown singing the blues
It's time 6________, I'm longer your 7________
And in another life I would be your girl
We keep all our promises, be us against the world
And in another life, I would make you stay
So I don't have to say you were the one that got away
The one that got away
The one, the one, the one
The one that got away
All these money can't buy me a time machine, no
Can't replace you with a million rings, no
8________, whoa
'Cause now I 9________
In another life I would be your girl
We keep all our promises, be us against the world
And in another life, I would make you stay
So I don't have to say you were the one that got away
The one that got away
The one, the one, the one, the one
And in another life I would make you stay
So I don't have to say you were the one that got away
The one that got away
(Repeat)
Answers + Meaning
1. make out : to make out with someone - to kiss and touch in a sexual way.
2. had a clue : to not have a clue (usually used with a negative) - to have no knowledge of or no information about something. Ex. I don’t have a clue where we are. We are really lost. In the song the lyric says “Talk about our future like we had a clue”. Katy Perry infers a negative or opposite meaning to this sentence through intonation. She is being a bit sarcastic with herself.
3. the one that got away : the one - a former lover that got away – the relationship broke up and the other person left the relationship. The person currently feels regret because they might let their soul mate or ideal match leave their life. The speaker realizes these feelings now but didn’t in the past.
4. the one that got away : same as number 3
5. tattoo : a tattoo - a permanent image, pattern or word on the skin which is created by using needles to put colors under the skin.
6. to face the music - to receive punishment; to accept the unpleasant results of one's actions.
7. muse : a muse - a source of inspiration; the goddess or the power regarded as inspiring a poet, artist, thinker, or the like.
8. I should've told you what you meant to me (direct meaning)
9. pay the price : to pay the price - to suffer the consequences for doing something or risking something.
Pop Culture Quiz
1. What’s a Mustang in this song?
- a horse
- a car
- a condiment
2. Which genre best describes Radio Head?
- Heavy Metal
- Classical
- Alternative Rock
3. What does a chain tattoo symbolize in this song?
- love
- hate
- oppression
4. Who was Johnny Cash?
- a musician
- a politician
- a model
5. Who was June?
- The name of a month
- The name of a bug
- The name of Johnny Cash’s second wife
Answers
1. b. a car
2. c. Alternative Rock
3. a. love
4. a. a musician
5. c. The name of Johnny Cash’s second wife
Part Two
Here are a few comprehension questions.
1. When did the girl and guy meet?
2. Why did the guy get away?
3. What does her ex-boyfriend do for a living?
4. Who is singing at the end of the song (after Katy Perry)?
5. What is the name of the excerpt of the song being played at the end of the video?
Answers
1. “Summer after high school”
2. She didn’t tell him her deepest feeling about him. She didn’t tell him how important he was to her. - “I should've told you what you meant to me”
3. He is a singer. - “Saw you downtown singing the blues”
4. Johnny Cash
5. You are my Sunshine
See you next week and in the meantime here is an old time video
of
And of course!
ALEX
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