What does You're Gonna Go Far Kid mean?

The Offspring: You're Gonna Go Far Kid Meaning

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Album cover for You're Gonna Go Far Kid album cover

You're Gonna Go Far Kid Lyrics

Show me how to lie
You’re getting better all the time
And turning all against the one
Is an art that’s hard to teach
Another clever word
Sets off an unsuspecting herd
And as you step back into line
A mob jumps to their feet

Now dance,...

  1. anonymous
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    Nov 22nd 2010 !⃝

    Lord of the Flies. Everything being sung in this song is something you can find in that book. Along with the fact that he even says the title in the song.

    If not completely that, the lyrics are about something simmilar to Lord of the Flies and he says the title because he's relating the two situations together.

  2. Erk
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    Nov 19th 2010 !⃝

    Has any one else read "Lord of the Flies"? The meaning of this song is a spin off of that book. Even the interpreted meaning of that book is the abuse of power as well as a comment on humanity in general; adults aren't much more mature than children. What I would like to know though is exactly what particular event they're commenting on. I think that's what they're really trying to do with this song.

  3. anonymous
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    Oct 30th 2010 !⃝

    I have to disagree with whole "bullied kid" idea. To me, the song is about a hitman and is told from his boss's or mentor's point of view. Lines like "hit em right between the eyes", "drifting closer in your sights", and "clever alibis" all point to a skillful assassin taking out his target, often with deception and mob control, as seen in the verses. Additionally, some of The Offspring's other songs, like Hammerhead, are also about violence/killing.

  4. anonymous
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    Oct 14th 2010 !⃝

    The song and video meanings are completely different. The main guy in the song is a liar and manipulator. The guy in the video abuses a gift he was given for personal gain, but hes not decieving others or lying. Put the lyrics to the video and see if it makes any sense - it doesn't.

  5. anonymous
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    Sep 17th 2010 !⃝

    Thank You! Finally, a correct answer! Yes, anonymous is right! It is the abuse of power!
    As you can see in the music video, the peasant is poor, no power, nothing, until the goddess gives him a magical guitar.
    He goes to the city, finding out that the guitar makes people dance, happy, and not to mention that gives him money.
    He then finds a group of ill people, and plays for them, curing them.
    The goddess who gave him the guitar, is watching and is pleased until he demands for the woman's expensive necklace.
    He then goes to a bouquet for rich people, he wants to enter, but he is shooed away because his appearance.
    He then plays for another group of people, gaining more money, enough to buy a suit.
    When he is allowed in the bouquet, he plays for them, for their money. The goddess appears, and takes the guitar making it play, and the peasant is now dancing alone, and then sent to hell. The guitar is dropped and turned into leaves.
    Also in the song, the lyrics, starts out like this,

    Show me how to lie
    You’re getting better all the time
    And turning all against the one
    Is an art that’s hard to teach
    Another clever word
    Sets off an unsuspecting herd
    And as you step back into line
    A mob jumps to their feet

    That's him gaining his power.

    Now dance (I prefer to keep it PG and say 'sucker') dance
    Man he never had a chance
    And no one even knew
    It was really only you

    That's in the very beginning when he had nothing.

    With a thousand lies
    And a good disguise
    Hit ‘em right between the eyes
    Hit ‘em right between the eyes
    When you walk away
    Nothing more to say
    See the lightning in your eyes
    See ‘em running for their lives
    Slowly out of line
    And drifting closer in your sights
    So play it out I’m wide awake
    It’s a scene about me
    There’s something in your way
    And now someone is gonna pay
    And if you can’t get what you want
    Well it’s all because of me

    And right about there is when he starts to take advantage of his power.

    At the end of the music video, when the goddess takes away the guitar, is his punishment for abusing his power. He then loses all his power again, and was sent for eternal damnation.

    Tada.

  6. anonymous
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    Sep 17th 2010 !⃝

    Fools watch the video, he gets a magical guitar and means to use it to cheer people up but gets corrupt and using it for greed. So the godess lady or whatever vanishes him for misusing the guitar did I mention it makes anyone dance.

  7. anonymous
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    Jun 25th 2010 !⃝

    its about the BIBLE, offspring is a known athiest band, in some respects that they are not christian. its a reference the the devils activities in todays times.

    Saying SHow me how to lies, as in how he gave eve the apple that taught them good and evil and thus sin.

    turning all against one is a art that hard to teach, turning us against god.

    reference to saying some clever words to upset us, then failing back into line and watching us place are anguish on god.

    the rest is easily interpret.
    actually most song produced nowadays have a religous forthought to them.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  8. hack3rcmv
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    Mar 29th 2010 !⃝

    I think that it's about a sniper shooting his target.

    "You’re getting better all the time
    And turning all against the one
    Is an art that’s hard to teach"
    -As he completes more 'jobs' he gets better, but people don't like him because he's a hired assassin. And being an assassin is "an art that's hard to teach"

    "Now dance, f*cker, dance
    Man, he never had a chance
    And no one even knew
    It was really only you"
    -"Dance, f*cker, dance" is what the assasin would be saying. 'Dancing' is often used as a term in movies for being shot at. "Man he never had a chance" means that he is new to his job and didn't think that he would do good. "And no one ever knew" means that no one ever found out that it was him.

    "And now you steal away
    Take him out today
    Nice work you did
    You’re gonna go far, kid"
    -This refers to what he did after his 'kill' and then what his 'boss' tells him.

    "With a thousand lies
    And a good disguise
    Hit ‘em right between the eyes
    Hit ‘em right between the eyes
    When you walk away
    Nothing more to say
    See the lightning in your eyes
    See ‘em running for their lives"
    -The first two lines mean that he had good 'cover'. The repeated line, "Hit 'em right between the eyes", is what the sniper is trying to do. Then he "walk[s] away". "See the lightning in your eyes, see ‘em running for their lives" is about the feeling of accomplishment that the sniper gets for hitting his 'target' and the other people around's reaction.

    "Slowly out of line
    And drifting closer in your sights
    So play it out I’m wide awake
    It’s a scene about me
    There’s something in your way
    And now someone is gonna pay
    And if you can’t get what you want
    Well it’s all because of me"
    -This part is all about the sniper focusing his "sights" on his gun on the 'target' and the rest is what he's thinking.

    ...And you get the idea

  9. anonymous
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    Mar 2nd 2010 !⃝

    David and Goliath fits the bill, especially the chorus.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  10. anonymous
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    Oct 20th 2009 !⃝

    It's about manipulation, but it doesn't have to be to get back at a bully. It's a kid who goes through school (or life, or whatever), destroying people in his way by manipulating their friends into hating them. The change in the line "Man he never had a chance" to "Man I never had a chance" shows the kid changed targets and is getting ready to destroy someone else's social life because he doesn't like them.

  11. anonymous
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    Jul 28th 2009 !⃝

    I think it's about a kid who's picked on at school by a bully. This bully is the main one who picks on him, but his friends and the wannabe-tough guys follow his lead to earn his approval. But the boy being picked on is holding back, waiting for the perfect time to strike. And strike he does, for then he joins the line of the beaten bully's friends and takes them to his side, and the lyric 'You're gonna go far kid' is in reference to his timing and his so easily turning the bully's friends from his side.

  12. shadowmagwai
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    Jul 24th 2009 !⃝

    I don't think he's trying to say something I think he's is just trying to make money by writing a good song

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  13. anonymous
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    Jul 8th 2009 !⃝

    i think its about a kid being bullied, but he gets his revenge by setting the social circle on him. "And turning all against the one; Is an art that’s hard to teach; Another clever word; Sets off an unsuspecting herd"

  14. snpragent009
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    Jun 9th 2009 !⃝

    Shit, I thought it was about a spy...doin his job on a bunch of unsuspecting people and ruining a bunch of lives, including some innoscent. (show me how to lie...with a thousand lies, and a good disguise...etc...) ehh,maybe I've been watching too much Burn Notice...

  15. Dimabag719
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    May 12th 2009 !⃝

    I think the song is about "The Lord of the Flies" Check the synopsis of that book on wikipedia, but basically, in the book, through manipulation and the evil in human nature, kids end up fighting another until one of the more innocent kid, Piggy, gets smashed right between the eyes with a huge boulder, smashing his head, and killing him.




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