--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The first thing about a song is that it…" description: "\"The first thing about a song is that it has to be real, be lived; it has to be emotional, and melancholic. I don't mean sad. Melancholy is sort of a co..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ee/keren-ann-24626_art_the-first-thing-about-a-song-is-that-it_1424801.png" --- # The first thing about a song is that it has to be real, be… ![“The first thing about a song is that it has to be real, be lived; it has to be emotional, and melancholic. I don't mean sad. Melancholy is sort of a comfort. Melancholy has a sort of beauty to it. This attracts me to every other form of art...” quote by Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ee/keren-ann-24626_art_the-first-thing-about-a-song-is-that-it_1424801.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ee/keren-ann-24626_art_the-first-thing-about-a-song-is-that-it_1424801.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7ee/keren-ann-24626_art_the-first-thing-about-a-song-is-that-it_1424801.png) > “The first thing about a song is that it has to be real, be lived; it has to be emotional, and melancholic. I don't mean sad. Melancholy is sort of a comfort. Melancholy has a sort of beauty to it. This attracts me to every other form of art...” [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Authentic art must convey genuine emotion, often through melancholy, which offers comfort and beauty. **In simple terms:** Real art feels emotional, even sad. Key Takeaway Seek truth and emotional depth in creation. Themes art emotion melancholy beauty authenticity Mood thoughtful introspective Type creative philosophical When to use this quote - writing lyrics - painting - photography - film scoring - personal journaling Key Concepts aesthetics psychology philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance melancholy with hope? - What emotions do you aim to evoke? A Different Perspective Melancholy can be misinterpreted as negativity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Being real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/being-real/) [Comfort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfort/) [Comfort Melancholy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comfort-melancholy-5056725/) [Emotion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotion/) [Emotional](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/emotional/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Form](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/form/) [Mean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mean/) [Melancholic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melancholic/) [Melancholy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melancholy/) [Melancholy Sort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/melancholy-sort-5056726/) [Real](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/real/) [Sad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad/) [Sad Melancholy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sad-melancholy-1578932/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) ## Related quotes > [“When I lie waking all alone, Recounting what I have ill done, My thoughts on me then tyrannize, Fear and sorrow me surprise, Whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-burton/when-i-lie-waking-all-alone-recounting-what-i-have-ill-done-my/) [Robert Burton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-burton/) > [It is a sad and very melancholy scene, which must strike everyone who knows and feels that we also have to pass one day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-van-gogh/it-is-a-sad-and-very-melancholy-scene-which-must-strike-everyone-who/) [Vincent Van Gogh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-van-gogh/) > [Gwynn, she was always talking about wanting to be drunk and honestly I did want to encourage that, I wanted to go to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michelle-tea/gwynn-she-was-always-talking-about-wanting-to-be-drunk-and-honestly-i/) [Michelle Tea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michelle-tea/) > [In Physic, things of melancholic hue and quality are used against melancholy, sour against sour, salt to remove salt humors.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/in-physic-things-of-melancholic-hue-and-quality-are-used-against/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [“Melancholia is, I believe, a musical problem: a dissonance, a change in rhythm. While on the outside everything happens with the vertiginous rhythm of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandra-pizarnik/melancholia-is-i-believe-a-musical-problem-a-dissonance-a-change-in/) [Alejandra Pizarnik](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandra-pizarnik/) > [The Beach Boys were my favorite. I use to listen to their hits over and over, especially 'In My Room' and 'Don't Worry Baby.'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-elverum/the-beach-boys-were-my-favorite-i-use-to-listen-to-their-hits-over/) [Phil Elverum](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-elverum/) > [There was something terrible, but also something sad and melancholy in this long cry uttered by the Russian infantry as they staged an attack.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vasily-grossman/there-was-something-terrible-but-also-something-sad-and-melancholy-in/) [Vasily Grossman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vasily-grossman/) > [“My memories, with images by Botticelli and harmonies by Mozart, of returning from a far away place, of the time when my tears were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emil-cioran/my-memories-with-images-by-botticelli-and-harmonies-by-mozart-of/) [Emil Cioran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emil-cioran/) > [Music is at its best when it is pleasingly melancholic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-spurgeon/music-is-at-its-best-when-it-is-pleasingly-melancholic/) [Charles Spurgeon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-spurgeon/) > [“All of this was mine, simply for agreeing to marry a man I did not love but who was, in the end, the only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-benjamin/all-of-this-was-mine-simply-for-agreeing-to-marry-a-man-i-did-not/) [Melanie Benjamin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-benjamin/) > [I always fear with music that it can be too immediate - too geared toward a "get addicted to it and throw it away"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-lopatin/i-always-fear-with-music-that-it-can-be-too-immediate-too-geared/) [Daniel Lopatin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-lopatin/) > ['Tu ki jaane' is a melancholic song about a love unfulfilled, about a road block in a once happy relationship also embodies the evolution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neha-bhasin/tu-ki-jaane-is-a-melancholic-song-about-a-love-unfulfilled-about-a/) [Neha Bhasin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neha-bhasin/) > [I am not sad, but I am melancholic. When you lose your mother at 20 and then your father soon after, melancholia is part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-kaas/i-am-not-sad-but-i-am-melancholic-when-you-lose-your-mother-at-20-and/) [Patricia Kaas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-kaas/) > [“Traits of melancholic type: talented, creative, analytical, idealistic, pessimistic, masochistic, critical and uncertain.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zoe-mckey/traits-of-melancholic-type-talented-creative-analytical-idealistic/) [Zoe McKey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zoe-mckey/) > [I know that New York is big - there are huge buildings - but, in fact, it's quite small and contained... I like it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-clementine/i-know-that-new-york-is-big-there-are-huge-buildings-but-in-fact-it-s/) [Benjamin Clementine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-clementine/) ## More by Keren Ann > [I'm very attached to Paris because I have a base there and am also recording there, but New York is home to me when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-m-very-attached-to-paris-because-i-have-a-base-there-and-am-also/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [I'm always on a train or a plane, so wherever I happen to be is home.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-m-always-on-a-train-or-a-plane-so-wherever-i-happen-to-be-is-home/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [If I look at it, it's about being able to get lost in New York, to explore the city, to have more personal stories…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/if-i-look-at-it-it-s-about-being-able-to-get-lost-in-new-york-to/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [I think it's very good to have regrets, to learn how to live with them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-think-it-s-very-good-to-have-regrets-to-learn-how-to-live-with-them/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [When you record, you live with what you recorded for many many years, but when you play it's just an hour and a half…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/when-you-record-you-live-with-what-you-recorded-for-many-many-years/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [I spend a lot of time writing in New York.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-spend-a-lot-of-time-writing-in-new-york/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [I'm nothing more than what you actually see, but I am also the complete opposite.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-m-nothing-more-than-what-you-actually-see-but-i-am-also-the/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [So usually even if you like a sentence or a story or something, it won't come out that way - it'll come out years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/so-usually-even-if-you-like-a-sentence-or-a-story-or-something-it-won/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [It's always a mixture of fiction and your own story. It's more I recreate atmospheres and moods through songs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/it-s-always-a-mixture-of-fiction-and-your-own-story-it-s-more-i/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [ I like the idea of having a calm, quiet room to work on my \[art\] while knowing that outside there's noise and a lot… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-like-the-idea-of-having-a-calm-quiet-room-to-work-on-my-art-while/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [Everything is temporary. Everything is bound to end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/everything-is-temporary-everything-is-bound-to-end/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [It's just trying everyday to do the best you can and to enjoy what you have with the mixture of the venue and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/it-s-just-trying-everyday-to-do-the-best-you-can-and-to-enjoy-what/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [I like the fact that there is challenge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-like-the-fact-that-there-is-challenge/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [I was in the studio so much, it was about the search for air in a metaphoric sense, and the breathing has more to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-was-in-the-studio-so-much-it-was-about-the-search-for-air-in-a/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) > [I think many experiences are bound to be failures, and sometimes I regret them before they even happen.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keren-ann/i-think-many-experiences-are-bound-to-be-failures-and-sometimes-i/) [Keren Ann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) [Explore all 24 Keren Ann quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keren-ann/) ## More Art quotes > [True works of art contain their own theory and give us the measurement according to which we should judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/true-works-of-art-contain-their-own-theory-and-give-us-the/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [Before Noah, men having only water to drink, could not find the truth. Accordingly...they became abominably wicked, and they were justly exterminated by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-franklin/before-noah-men-having-only-water-to-drink-could-not-find-the-truth/) [Benjamin Franklin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-franklin/) > [“Hear the sum of the whole matter in the compass of one brief word — every art possessed by man comes from Prometheus.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aeschylus/hear-the-sum-of-the-whole-matter-in-the-compass-of-one-brief-word/) [Aeschylus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aeschylus/) > [I think most artists feel like they're outside society - no matter how many accolades they receive, or how much money is in your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-rose/i-think-most-artists-feel-like-they-re-outside-society-no-matter-how/) [Aaron Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-rose/) > [The capacity to be puzzled is the premise of all creation, be it in art or in science.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/the-capacity-to-be-puzzled-is-the-premise-of-all-creation-be-it-in/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [That's the great secret of creativity. You treat ideas like cats: you make them follow you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ray-bradbury/that-s-the-great-secret-of-creativity-you-treat-ideas-like-cats-you/) [Ray Bradbury](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ray-bradbury/) > [“So, really," continued Jacob as if this were perfectly normal to expound on art in these circumstances, "when you think about it, the artists…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justina-chen-headley/so-really-continued-jacob-as-if-this-were-perfectly-normal-to-expound/) [Justina Chen Headley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justina-chen-headley/) > [“There are two options in art; either to adopt philosophical life by dissecting art, or to write your own philosophical life and claim it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taf-teh/there-are-two-options-in-art-either-to-adopt-philosophical-life-by/) [Taf Teh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taf-teh/) > [The house has to serve comfort. The work of art is revolutionary; the house is conservative.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adolf-loos/the-house-has-to-serve-comfort-the-work-of-art-is-revolutionary-the/) [Adolf Loos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adolf-loos/) > [During human progress, every science is evolved out of its corresponding art.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert-spencer/during-human-progress-every-science-is-evolved-out-of-its/) [Herbert Spencer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert-spencer/) > [In literature and art memory is a synonym for invention. It is the life-blood of imagination, which faints and dies when the veins are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-aris-willmott/in-literature-and-art-memory-is-a-synonym-for-invention-it-is-the/) [Robert Aris Willmott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-aris-willmott/) > [I think a business guy is different from an artist. They walk different paths. Artists create the best outputs when they're having fun. 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