What does Scars mean?

Papa Roach: Scars Meaning

Album cover for Scars album cover

Scars Lyrics

I tear my heart open, I sew myself shut
My weakness is that I care too much
And my scars remind me that the past is real
I tear my heart open just to feel

Drunk and I'm feeling down
And I just wanna be alone
I'm pissed cause you came...

  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    heavenly_rage
    click a star to vote
    May 29th 2006 !⃝

    It's about a guy who's in love with a girl and throughout the whole relationship he does nothing but give everything of himself to her to help her, to be there for her, to save her from her demons with nothing in return. He finally decideds to leave although he still loves her and his heart's still open to her and she keeps coming back to try to win him back, but he's so fed up with focusing on purely her that he wants her out of his life, so he can move on, because the pain of being with her is too much to handle anymore, and he realises everything he did was for nothing because she took everything for granted and abused his love and trust. Be bared all for her with nothing in return.

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Feb 12th 2013 !⃝

    A lot of people are saying it's a romantic relationship, but after I experienced something this song made so much more sense to me. It doesn't have to be a romantic relationship and it doesn't have to be literal physical scars.

    I think that my experience resonates very closely to the song's meaning. I had a close friend with a lot of issues. She was a mess, and "compassion's in my nature" so I tried to help her carry her burdens and take on her pain as my own. I "left my heart open" to her, but she "didn't understand" the sacrifices I was making to try to help her. I knew she was quickly going down a dark path, but she refused to accept it and address her problems. She was "drowning in the water," so I "offered" and then really "tried to grab her hand".

    My weakness was that I cared for her too much. I bared my heart too much. I figuratively "tore it open" and had to keep "sewing it shut" because of the pain I was going through.

    At the end of it all I was left with the feelings this song conveys. I was angry and frustrated. I became a mess, "insane" by trying to take on her problems, and I realized that she was being selfish by channeling all her problems to me. I couldn't fix her. "I can't help you fix yourself," but "at least I could say I tried". I was so sad to have failed, but I had to "move on with my own life". I didn't want to see her, I was depressed and "just wanted to be alone".

    So this is my take on it. After that experience the song resonated really strongly with me and made complete sense to me.

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 11th 2006 !⃝

    The guy in this song is still in love with her, but she just wants to be friends and sees him as someone she can go to, but he can't take the pain of having her so close to him yet so far from where he wants to be. He's ready to move on, and also when he sees her its like a scar-not phsically but always a constant reminder of how he got it and the good times they shared.

  4. nobodyyouknow
    click a star to vote
    Mar 29th 2012 !⃝

    It's about him trying to help but realizing that no matter what he does he can't so he's done trying to do the impossible. He's still burdened, however.

  5. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jul 6th 2011 !⃝

    Jacoby said it meant alot of things he said it was him on drugs and alchohol and about a night in vegas and about the time he tried to kill himself.

  6. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 4th 2011 !⃝

    I think that this song is about a guy who has been sober or over come some problem but then he met a girl and she brought him down meaning he started to use agian and this happened because he was focused on her instead of himself and what he needed kinda what he says at the end that he cant help her till he helps himself and he cant help her till she wants it. I dont think this song is about self harm I think that is souppost to smyblize the pain of losing some one you love even when you dont wanna lose those people and it sucks more when there choices casue that to happen!!! :)

  7. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 3rd 2011 !⃝

    I think the song is about trying to help someone he cares about but they don't know they're in trouble and when they realise, they start to rely on him for everything, so he starts to regret even trying to help them because they can't be fixed, they have to fix themselves.

  8. ronladyut
    click a star to vote
    Oct 17th 2010 !⃝

    I think its a song to a girl who can't let go of anything....that she refuses help in some cases...and the guy is trying so hard to keep her head on straight...and the fire I think it resembles their relationship and everything they had between each other..it was destroyed because she shut him out>>just my opinion

  9. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jun 26th 2010 !⃝

    He said it was about a "F***ed up night in Vegas" that changed his life. Despite the video, I don't believe it's about a woman. I can't remember where I read it, but I do believe Jacoby said he was with a friend in Vegas who was really down, and despite Jacoby's best effort, he couldn't help his friend be happy.

  10. mikey625
    click a star to vote
    Jan 15th 2010 !⃝

    The song is about people who out of there own compassion try to help others with big problems but in in this, they end up screwing themselves because going through the trouble of helping, no matter how hard, they are working on someone who is hopeless, they realize it but the screw ups just expect you there, then the song says "Go help yourself" it's a message saying to people who help to tell the screw ups they help to do it themselves or that only they can do it.

    Also the beginning

    "I tear my heart open"

    Says I help them with all my effort for no positive result.

    "I sew myself shut"

    Tells screw ups to go fix themselves and letting himself be better.

  11. Etlir
    click a star to vote
    Nov 18th 2009 !⃝

    Jacoby Shaddix is the singer of Papa Roach. He has admitted the fact that he used to partake in self mutilation. Scars is about an evening in Las Vegas in which he self mutilated the back of his head so badly he had to receive 11 stitches. You can tell on his head where he hurt himself. The song is all about himself not an ex girlfriend.

  12. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Sep 5th 2009 !⃝

    I've read some of these interpretations and most are wrong some are close. The song scars was actually written about when jacoby had been having his own alcohol probelms. One night jacoby was drunk and broke his head open. He had gone to the hospital. He had gotten 12 stitches in the back of his head. His girlfrien got pissed at Him because she was afraid he was becoming an alcoholic. The song was written about this experience in his life.

  13. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jul 14th 2009 !⃝

    Okay I don't know what the original meaning is..bcuz obviously I didn't write it..but I can tell you wat it means to me. I can relate this song to a relationship that I'm dealing with. me and my ex were best friends and I was crazy about him..and finally we got together only for me to get uber attached and fall head over heals for him..while he felt nothing. So we broke up..i cared too much and that's wy I got hurt..i cared so much more deeply than he did..and after the break up we were/are still friends..and we are gettin closer now than ever before..and its so hard to be close to him without wanting more than just a friendship. It still hurts to see him..and to think about him with somebody else even tho he's my best friend. I am hurting myself by being close to him still, but I'm not strong enough to let him go.

  14. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 8th 2009 !⃝

    can someone whos HASNT seen the music video answer
    because this song is entirely NOT about his girlriend having a drinking problem.
    HE"S actually the one whos admitted to alchohol abuse
    AND admitted that this song is about his self harming.

  15. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 8th 2009 !⃝

    well... jacoby has actualy addmitted that scars is about his self mutilation. particularly a time when h went to get 11 staples in his head at the hospital cuz he "got into a fight with a trash can".


    this song. has a lot of meaning, JACOBY had a problem with drinking and alchohol abuse as well

  16. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Jan 25th 2009 !⃝

    I love it how someone will quote the true meaning about the song and then the very next post is about a chick with issues.
    But in saying that, just because the original statment was meant one way doesnt mean that it doesnt say something else to another.
    Ones own experiences can change the way they take a statment. If your a self harmer i imagine you pull that out of it because it helps you relate to the song and that makes you feel better because you dont feel so alone.
    So yeah, people will pull out of a song what they need to help them relate. people are like that, then again some just think to much.

  17. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    Oct 12th 2008 !⃝

    It's about how whenever he sees his ex, he remembers the happy times, and I'm guessing there was a bad breakup, she's prolly has some sort of addiction, or she harms herself. and he has compassion for everyone. and seeing her like that hurts him so he wants to help. but then she srews him over again. and he's drinking to forget it all.

  18. anonymous
    click a star to vote
    May 17th 2008 !⃝

    Ok this song is nothing about a girlfriend/boyfriend relationship at all
    jacoby has said so in many interviews

    It's about "a crazy night in vegas that changed [his] life" (quote from the live dvd). You have all been pwned.

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