Miss Me? - Listen Bitch! Just To Love And Be Loved In Return

Episode Date: October 6, 2025

Miquita Oliver and Jordan Stephens answer your questions about lyrics.Next week, we want to hear your questions about DOGS. Please send us a voice note on WhatsApp: [phone]. Or, if you like, send us an email: [e-mail] episode contains very strong language and adult themes.Credits: Producer: Natalie Jamieson Technical Producer: Will Gibson Smith Assistant Producer: Caillin McDaid Production Coordinator: Rose Wilcox Executive Producer: Dino Sofos Assistant Commissioner for BBC: Lorraine Okuefuna Commissioning Editor for BBC: Dylan HaskinsMiss Me? is a Persephonica production for BBC Sounds

This episode of Miss Me contains very strong language and there's some adult themes this week. As well as themes of a strong sexual nature and also many, many seconds and minutes of us trying to remember the lyrics that we want to tell you. Ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding, it's that time. over the week it's time for listen bitch and you better listen you better listen oh yeah i really am quite interested in the t-shirt you're wearing today thank you it's a pigeon t-shirt thank you very much it is a pigeon t-shirt we have learned in the last few days people love pigeons i am happy i'm very happy i've been contacted by several pigeon charities we no negita i've been getting DMs like you wouldn't believe brav oh my i want to be in the bird

gang as well. Like, I love birds. I should have said, I should have spoken up. Yes. You need to be vocal with your love for a under-loved. Parakeets. I love parakeets. Hey, they're knocking about to because, you know, there's a bunch of them in London. Just, just beautiful. There's loads of green, yeah, just parakeets, just squawking away. They were literally fluttering around me and Zeddy. Do you know the story there? Well, I love them my name's in it. What do you mean? Keats. Do you know why there's parakeets in London? Um,

no, I don't. You've not asked yourself that question. You're not asked us why there's green tropical birds flying around London.

Climate change. Stop, I'm an idiot. Okay, what do you know? Do you know what? Is this lyrics? I don't think so.

This is Birdwatch. Oh, no way. We have just been told. No, shut up. We have just been told. Hendrix, as in Jimmy, let a parakeet out of his window and then...

Oh, it has to have been two. It can't have cloned itself. Do you know what I mean? He let out the window. It flew into a laboratory. Accidentally cloned a thousand of itself. No, but even if there were two, are we saying two of Hendrix's tropical birds

just mated and created the parakeets that sing around us? Oh, it would be, wouldn't it be great if that was the reason? But apparently there were sightings of parakeets in the 19th century, so it poo-poo's all over that theory. But it was a nice story. Birds are one of the only truly monogamous, like, animal groups on the planet. Oh, my God. And monogamy in its true sense, not like monogamy for a bit.

Like, they meet one bird and they're like, yeah, that's it. That's my baby. That's my baby, for Eves, until we get run over. I find it to something really horrific. happens to one of us. But you know what, that's all right. We'll say, this is, you God, you know some shit. We'll save all that for birds.

I do know, I just, I spend so much time looking up random shit on the internet. But look, can I just say? Good, not the internet. Can't you read some books about birds? Books too. I had readers digest as a child. I used to look out of the window and try and find the birds in the book. And all I could see was, I mean, blue tits.

Estate, yeah. Okay, all right. We can't have it out. Wait a minute. They're called blue tits. I know what blue tits are. Why are we cutting it out? There's a bird.

Because we need to get to lyrics and I had a segue. Do you know there's a bird called a brown booby? This is the shit I'm trying to walk away from. So I guess lyrics works for all this bird chat because, you know, the, their song. This is a, this is a band. Oh, pigeon detectives. No, not pigeon detectives. Which is, oh my God, I'm just really deep.

like, what are they detecting? That's a whole other story. Do you remember the pigeon detectives from 2001? Of course I remember the pigeon detectives. That's your era. You probably fancied every member of them. You're on tour with them, weren't you? They did play at TV for on the beach anytime, sure.

Pigeon, Margate-based band. Got a lead singer's called Fally. He's absolutely amazing. Like, incredible voice. One of the first people I ever heard in Margate. I know it sounds mental, but I really was in a random junk store, like a bric-a-brack store

and he was just singing and I asked someone what the song was on the radio and it's not a song it's just this guy here finally beautiful my mate Tom is in the band as well he's an incredible director

but also plays guitar in band Pigeon they are amazing well that leads us that leads us to lyrics nicely shall we have our first bloody question not on birds on lyrics

before we go on to it were you going to shout out the pigeon theme tune before we went onto it did I stop me from talking about a pigeon theme tune no sorry I got no okay

No, no. That wasn't me. Let's have our first. Yeah, no, that's good. No, that's good. Let's have our first question. A lal virgin noise. A bird noise. Hi, Jordan and Makita. This is Sophie from Bristol. I absolutely love the podcast. I've been listening since the beginning. For dinner last night, we had beef, sort of chema, spiced curry thing with rice and breads. talking about lyrics really made me think of my MSN and Facebook days where I just used to post like cryptic lyrics but not very cryptic

talking about moments of my life like if you broke up with a boyfriend and I was putting on By Usher lyrics just so cringe and then I would put on my Facebook lyrics of like really what I thought like fit boys thought was a cool song and that maybe I'd get a like from them that sort of thing so yeah my question to you is did you use to put put lyrics as your MSN status or your Facebook status or on any of the social media platforms either to get attention or just because you thought you were cool.

Thanks so much. Bye. Sophie, he started us good and ready. Yes, nice. Did you have MSN or were you? I think I missed MSN. How could I have missed MSN? I think it's because you're a boomer, no.

Fuck you. Actually, we're both millennials, dude. You're a millennial? So. I'm not even an older one Don't start with me Millennials are kind of old You're quite a young millennial

If anything It's not a young person Genre Not even genre, what is it? What defines millennial Like, do you have to be a teenager During the millennium? No, this is the thing

It's about the years Between that you were born So I'm 84, what are you, 93? 92 92 And that is a millennial, right? Yeah, I'm definitely a millennial Yeah

What, you think I'm pushing? You think I'm stretching? Stretching to be a millennial. Okay. Let me go for a checklist. Were you on Myspace? Yes. Okay. Were you on Bebo?

No. Were you on MSN? That's too young. MSN I missed. But that's just because I was busy. Busy, just being like inventing, presenting. I was. Yeah.

I was doing shit. Okay. So what we talk about lyrics on MSN. So tell me how MSN works. What is it like alerts and other people see it? If you ask me how MSN works, it's crazy, guys. Wait, do you even know what Haba Hotel is?

No. Wow. I don't think you qualify as a millennial. I'll be real, man. I'll be real. You were like 38, do it. Oh my God. Oh my God.

I'll be so real. No. Millennials would be more like, quote, friends to me. Like, I could make a friend's joke and you would laugh. How did you communicate with people when you're a teenager? Be real. And if you say a pager, you're a boomer. Yeah.

I did have a fitcher. You are a, Macita. If you can remember. I remember actually communicating via a pager. You do not qualify as a millennial. I got a pager when they came back and they were for young kids. It wasn't like Aiman's pager. Amon's pager was like black and serious like him.

But my fager was like pink and it was called like, I can't remember. I'm going to be real. I didn't have a pager because I was too young. Because you were too young, fine. Yeah, yeah. This is an interesting dynamic for our conversations because we share the same eight like what what is it called what's it called we share the same blah blah but i am the top end and you are the bottom end you're the young end i'm the older end what are the millennial years stop it we need

to get back to lyrics dickhead you are right listen 981 you fit in it thank you and i'm 84 yeah wow you have a whole three years in what about you you must be right at the end yeah it's 981 to 96. Interesting. That is actually kind of fascinating. Anyway, look, I'll tell you this. I'll be quick about it if you don't have your own MSN thing. So it was literally just instant messaging.

That was all it was. And it was funny because your name, I mean, it was crazy. Like, your name dictated so many things. I'll give you the fullest extremity of what a name could be. So you'd have your name, well, we call them emojis now. I don't know what we would have called them then. But you'd have all these mad signs, like, like, you know, imagery symbols in and around your name to like highlight it.

Okay. Then sometimes people would have who they're dating in hearts, yeah. As their name. In their name, yeah. And then you would have, some people then listed their friends afterwards. And the maddest thing is I once got in a relationship with a girl. And the only reason I realized that we weren't in a relationship anymore is because I came

out of our MSN name. She didn't even tell me. I got, I got demoted and then another boy just went up into hearts. I was like, what the fuck? You could have told me. It's a strange thing, isn't it? Like, I wonder, I guess there were no other places.

Because I guess you didn't have a bio and you didn't have top friends or something so you were trying to say as much about yourself. It was just on the cusp of MySpace, yeah. Anyway, we have to get back to lyrics. So would you have... Yes, I did. So, okay, sorry for lyrics.

I do have one memory of a lyric I put in my MSN name, right? And it was by Sway de Saffo, the rapper. Shout out Sway all day. I actually mentioned him on the podcast of Lil because he remixed LDN. Anyway. Yeah, yeah, Sway. He had a lyric on a Mitchell Brothers remix called Harvey Nix.

And he said, he said, Mitchell brothers, oh my God. Despite this, I like shopping here. It's a lot quicker than eBay. I bumped into this Labour MP. He was looking for a pair of CK. I said, hi, I'm sway. And I hope you have a nice day.

So I slapped him in his face and said, what type of party doesn't have a DJ? That's good shit. I had in my MSN name, what kind of party doesn't have a DJ? Nice. Very nice. Oh, we fucking got there in the end.

Okay, okay, I get it now. I'm just enthralled by this MSN thing. where the fuck I might have been when everyone was at MSNing. You ping people, you ping, ping, ping, ping, ping. Yeah, I remember Tyson was doing it when I lived at Nannas and she was like 14 and I was like 18. So maybe it was a young person's game. And sometimes you could guess people's MSN.

I remember like trying to, you have to put their email in to get their MSN. And one time I like guessed someone's email, which is kind of crazy. I just thought it'd be funny. And then there's also people, there's a producer called Shy One Beat's who's amazing. She's like a radio DJ now, but she was really supportive to me with my music. That's how you contact people, send them MP3s and stuff. I hope they work with you. Why didn't you just use, so this is post Myspace?

No, no, no, no. This is on the cusp of Myspace becoming more. So MSN was first. You can't instant message on Myspace. You can DM on Myspace. Oh my God, I can't even remember. MSN is, you know, you can see where someone's online. And you know what's so cute is that if you, like, fancy someone,

you would literally wait for them to come online. And then you'd see their little thing to change color and you'd get like little butterflies and be like, oh my God. And you'd try and speak to them. Yeah, but you know what? I've got this really cool book that Seb got me called Shapes and Symbols, the power of shapes and symbols.

And I remember when I was so into someone, the shape of their name on Instagram, it became so much bigger than who they were to me. It was to the point where actually when I started dating them again, I was still looking for that shape. And I was like, they're in your life. I completely know what you mean. And that's how much the symbol had become more important

than anything that was actually real. Wow. So I totally get that. I still do it. Like, you know, if someone that, the shape of someone's name on your phone, like, it does make me feel things. I completely understand what you mean.

Next question? Yeah. Fuck yeah. Hello, Mikita and Jordan. This is Rachel, originally from West London, now living in Kent. I have a question for you about lyrics. When I was younger,

I didn't really pay much attention to the lyrics. I was all about the tune and really the bass line and whether I could dance to the song. As I've got older, I guess I, you know, connect more with the lyrics and listen more and understand more probably about what songs might be about. So I wondered, do you think it's possible to love a song even if you don't like or like don't agree with the lyrics? I would love to know your thoughts.

Thank you. Bye. Great question. Is there a song where I don't like and don't agree with the lyrics? But you've loved the tune, but the lyrics you don't agree with. Oh my God, like half of my library. Yeah, totally. But there was this one song, the Budjubanton came out with.

Yeah, right. Boom, bye, bye and a batty boy head. Crazy. I didn't really understand it. My mom was furious that I was listening to it, or that I heard it. And I remember it really stayed with me, like how violent what he was saying was. and how much I hadn't taken notice. I mean, I was a kid, so there's quite a lot in it that I didn't understand.

But I could have just been like, yeah, beautiful song or whatever, great party tune and not really listened to what that person was saying. I mean, that was terrifying to me. But also something like Gabriel, like it's such a like, he literally says one word, but it's such a tune that it doesn't really matter about the lyrics because, like, you know what song I'm talking about? I don't. Gabriel.

That's all he says for the whole tune. But you don't know Gabriel. I probably do, sorry. Maybe you aren't a millennial, yeah. I guess that is quite a millennial rave tune. Maybe there's a chance I do. I'm probably quite embarrassed by that. Children, let me tell you something.

What? Should we talk about where the word lyric comes from? It's ancient Greek, lillicos, meaning pertaining to the liar. An accompaniment of a liar, and this original meaning, words set to music. eventually led to it to Houston English appearing in the mid-16th century. So I guess that's when we had our first like song mid-16th century.

Can we play Jordan the first ever song recorded? So we can describe it. Basically the oldest song that you want to show me, Makita, is played on an ancient instrument which I find really interesting. Oh yeah. This song to the Hurrian goddess Nikal

is the oldest piece of music for which we have both the words and the accompanying musical notes, the work was written on clay tablets around 3,500 years ago and was discovered by ecologists in the 1950s in the ruins of the ancient city of Ugarit. So it's Middle Eastern. Yeah.

That's incredible. 3,500 years ago. Can you imagine what it felt like to first hear music? No, okay. The animals are musical. Don't need I sing the pigeon song again. Of course. Bird song would have been first.

Can I, just to answer the question? Yes. lyrics oh sorry do i have to like the song but not the lyrics okay i think that's what she said is that what she said yeah because i was going to say obviously if it was just not liking the lyrics then i'm just going to go straight up with feed the world like what's going on with that no but that there is a lyric in that that i used to always think it was very interesting bono said tonight thank god it's them instead of you thank god it's them instead of you everyone had to look at themselves the whole song makes me uncomfortable because it's

fucking awful and incredibly condescending and patronising I absolutely agree but what I'm saying is that lyric made people have to look at their deepest thought which is at least it's not us no

shout out fuse ODG my G yeah he knows it's antithetical to the progress of Africa is placing Africa in a position that had been put there by Europe anyway but I do think that that lyric was a mirror

there's a couple of lyrics about Tina Turner as well in rap songs that I don't like when they make light of the fact that she was beaten yes my mom hates that as well. Eat the cake. Anime. J-Z. Drunk in love. Banging song. Awful lyric. And also, it's a love song. It's a really weirdly placed lyric. It's like, I do say if I do. If I do it,

he's just bang on. Do say song myself. He's just saying random shit, man. Yeah. And then it's suddenly in there. I'm happy you brought that up. My mom doesn't like that either. Yeah, fuck that lyric. All right. Let's have another question for lyrics, which is getting so deep. Sorry, I'm incapable of having shallow conversation. It's fucking awful. It's like an affliction. Good. That really works on a podcast. Hi, Makita and Jordan. I love you both, loving the podcast. I am sending this message from Gateshead in the northeast. And my question about lyrics is, what was your song of choice that you tried to learn the lyrics to when you were younger? And do you remember, like, recording songs from the top 40 of the radio on a tape? So when you had to press play and record at the same time and hold

them down. My memory of doing that is TLC Waterfalls, like the rap from Waterfalls. And if you do have one, can you remember the lyrics now? Thanks very much. Bye. We are the same generation because when that lady talked about tapes, we both went, oh yeah, the water. Yes, what is yours? Mine was, uh, lauddy-da-di, we likes the party, we don't cause trouble, we don't bother nobody. But wait, who is it? It's Snoop, but he's doing a cover. Slick Rick, exactly But it's on doggy style And me, Namer and Marlon one summer

Just spent the whole summer Learning the song I think I could do the whole thing Yeah I won't do it I did enough Do it right now No obviously I can't do the whole song

I can just do that rap First intro And also a lot of Wu-Tang I always wanted to learn I had a file I had a folder And the second we got a printer I would obsessively print out lyrics

mostly lyrics from complex raps that I didn't necessarily understand when I found a website that had the lyrics it blew my mind and I had printed out there's one song where the Fuji's called vocab

Oh stop! Stop! No! Oh my God! Jordan! Thanks for being here! Oh my God, I nearly did vocab I was like if he doesn't know then he won't know vocab I got the vocab

you got the vocab you know I got the vocab But do you remember the last verse When the guy came in The film of my bill Oh, yeah, yeah. Did you do that? Could you get in the praz bit?

Divide we stand. Did we stand? Did we come? What's that flavor? Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Yeah, and I did we stand, bra. No, because I love the way Lauren Hill comes in. I actually nearly...

They had question marks. They didn't know what you were saying in some of them. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But there's this bit, you know, I nearly did Fuji's zealots, which is like... Pick up the microphone. Ah, ah.

No, but when she's like, it's good, it's about being. plagiarized. It's about being copied. And I thought, that's strong. What did she say? What did Lauren say this time, wise bitch? She said, see my rhymes are the type of fly rhymes that can only get down with my crew. And if you try and tape lines or bite rhymes, we'll show you how the refugees do. And I was just like, yeah. Yeah, man. And in vocab, she comes in, what's the matter with the black man? What's the matter with the black man, black man. I do not believe me check the psychic.

Oh. No, wait. I mean, it's just too good. I printed off all those lyrics. Too good. Also, just for the sake of balance, I printed out the lyrics to the song of Craig David's second album. Wait.

Yeah, yeah, what? Go on. It's like, so you're what are you going to do with that? I'm still with you. To the back. It's the keys of the keys of the flat. Where screen DVD, the DVD's in there. Because he can wrap fast Craig David, yeah.

Can we argue that Craig David is a dynamite lyricist? If he writes his bars, fuck yeah. What are you talking about? Does someone else write Craig David's lyrics for him? Sorry, I don't even know my question's it. Craig David is the foremost lyricist of his songs. And he needs double credit for that. Triple maybe.

Absolutely. What was the not seven days? The other one. What's your flavour? Tell me what's your flavor. I mean, come on. That was Craig. Sorry, I did not think what's your flavor was going to be the other one.

But I can tell you this for sure. I printed the lyrics out to that bad boy. I met this black girl in a club Went by the name of Peacan de Lux This ice cream was hymen and it's when I took her out And they cost me 20 bucks Oh yeah, no, he loves a metaphor You what I'm born in a night

You what I need I want to taste you Take your home with me girl Stop It's a bang-up It's actually a fucking shit Brother Best ice cream song of all time

Literally think me Best ice cream song of all time And he keeps those metaphors Roll until the end His second album Oh my God Slicketh in your average Oh my God, that's what it was

Oh my God, oh my God, I'm freaking out Wait, it's from the actual song Enie Meenie Manny Mo Go does you let I go I actually love that song I actually Practice that And then he goes even faster afterwards

I can't do that But like Yeah no he's an underrated genius I mean he was still doing it In kind of in an American accent Which is a shame But it was a different time Can I just say by the way

My most vivid memory Of the radio was my mum She went to work and I must have been off that day or I don't know what I was just in the flat and she was like Jordan if you hear Try Again by Aaliyah

hit that record button and I remember playing with my toys in the other room and I've heard it the BBC the guy induced it and I ran in got the tape to sit

and what did you say that is such a 90th story when you hear this song I mean we used to sit around and wait for songs on the box yeah proper And it made it sweeter.

Try again, and Leah, bang-off. It was like a sweet, it was like weight. There was a lot, you know what? There was a lot of when, for our generation when we were young. Waiting, patience. Yeah, look, we can't do this. And that means you, no, but it's true, though, because I would sit and read cover-to-cover,

Nirvana's, or like, whatever, pearl jams. The lyrics, every lyric. The lyrics, I would immerse myself in them. And I think that's, maybe we paid more attention to lyrics, and they were at more of the forefront of what people's output was was because you were in it more. He had less distraction. Yeah.

It's Keats. 1,000% it was a beautiful time and we are very lucky to have seen both sides of that. I missed that. Listen, we used to, imagine you used to make a plan and he just turned up and it was up in the air whether or not the person would even be there. You'd be like meet you at a cinema up too and you'd be there just like hoping for the best. We're not even hoping for the best. trusting that it would work.

Trusting that they'll be there. Or you just go knock for a friend. Are they in? No, all the way back home. I think we should go to a break, Makita. If only I can think of a lyric pun to get us to the break, but maybe there'll be a brilliant one on the other side. No, couldn't think of one.

Welcome back. Welcome back. Guess who's back, back again? Oh yeah, guess who's back, back again. Shadie's back to a friend. That'll do. Back to black. Hello.

That's what we're calling this podcast now. Back to black. Another question? Another question, please, for lyrics. I'm Jordan. Long-time listener, Shari, from East London. I am a dance teacher, so music is very important to me and also lyrics of songs. What are your favourite lyrics and why?

And also, is there any that you love so much that you come to every day or think about or write down? My husband has lyrics tattooed on his arm from his favourite song from when he was a teenager, which I think he actually probably regrets now. In fact, I know he does. Any stories around your favourite lyrics and if they are framed on your wall or anything like that? love to the podcast. Love ya.

Nature boy, Nat King Cole. Go on. Hit me with it. Well, it's again, I was like, is it just his beautiful voice and the accompanying... Please do it. Bees do it. Even... No. No. Can we not bastardize Nat King's with that?

Okay, this is a really good time for him. Nature boy is... I think nature... Even educated. Bees do it. it let's do it let's fall in low but that is actually a beautiful song what is the line do you know i didn't write it down but i know off by hot da go on the greatest thing you'll ever learn sing it sing it sing it the greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in

return you sing it because you can sing no that is i like that you spoke it actually yeah right lyrics simple too tough to do that and it's also the story around those lyrics in the song is just it's just so simple and it's you know there was a boy a very something enchanted boy like that's such a beautiful beginning to anything sorry i thought you're about to sing the beginning of skater boy by averil ravine no no that wouldn't be in my greatest lyrics of all time he was a boy she was a girl can i make it any more i be yes Okay, so what's yours, darling? Oh, this is hard because I, obviously, this is, you know, much of my life has been involved around lyrics. I love lyrics.

I'm very much a lyric person and I have multiple shoutouts. I want to do as a disclaimer, there's no way I can encapsulate all of the lyrics that I love. I'll start off with the fun ones just to throw away because this is like not appreciated on a deeper level. But in terms of silly lyrics that have stayed in me forever, do you know, the rapper two chains? Yes. He has one lyric in a feature on a Jason Drullo song called Talk Dirty, which is arguably one of the best pop songs of all time. But anyway, it's another conversation.

I disagree. I think Jason Dirolo is one of the worst pop stars that ever existed. But go ahead. Talk Dirty is a fucking banger. If I'm with you at a party and Talk Dirty comes on, you know you're busting a move, Miquita. Never. I would never dance to DeRulo.

No, anyway. I hated this period of music. Yeah, it was an awful period, but this was a shining light amongst it. Anyway, so Chuchains comes in. He's something like portion beamers, Nunez, sold out arenas, you can suck my penis. No, he does.

And also, what's so funny is, I swear on anything. Sold out arenas, you can suck my penis. No, but, Macquita, the best thing about it is, I don't think he'd ever done an arena at that point in his life. Anyway, or maybe he had, maybe he had, but then he goes, sure. But then he says in that lyric, I can't remember the buildup line is, but he says, pussy's so good, I bought her a pet.

That lyric has stayed of me, my whole life. Like I actually just continuously think of the elation Like that must have been such good sex For him to be mid-sex thinking I'm a, I'm gonna buy this woman I'm gonna get her a cat I'm gonna get this woman a dog Or a cat or something because this is fucking wild

She needs a gift Do you know what it's a fucking compliment It's a compliment if I had a kitten That sex was so good babe I'm about to buy you a hamster Anyway So that was my silly shit That's David of me forever.

But there's many rap lyrics. I, just as a note, I think rappers are obviously within a certain community. It's massively appreciated. But I think globally, historically, people don't understand how incredible rap can be, the extent of poetry that is included in rap. The fact that if I was to be asked specifically about my favorite rap lyric, I would talk about this one from Farron Monch, who your mom loves, actually, this album, Desire, amazing album.

He encapsulates an entire. story in four bars, which is they researched my stem cells, cloned enemy, sent one of them back in time just to get rid of me, stop Farramont from having verbal epiphanies, now that's new definition to your own worst enemy. Oh, fuck, yeah. Four bars, and the guy has told a sci-fi novel.

Like, that's crazy. So anyway, that's what rap can do. Powerful shit. That's powerful shit, Faramont, shout out. So the closest I've ever come to getting lyrics tattooed on me is Fiona Apple. Have you heard you say this? before? No, which bloody Fiona

when the pawn? No, no, no. This is what's crazy. It's the theme tune to the affair. Yeah, I love that song. It's called the container. I remember every word. It is one of the most incredible

encapsulations of existence and it was a theme tune. She goes, I was screaming into the canyon at the moment of my death. The echo I created outlasted my last breath. My voice, it made an avalanche

and buried a man I never knew. And when he died, his widowed bride met your daddy and they made you. I have only one thing to do and that's be the wave that I am and then sink back into the ocean. Sensing back into the ocean. Oh my God, Fiona! Fiona! I'm only one thing to do and that's be the wave that I am and then sink back into the ocean. And also the way she's saying it and sink back into the ocean.

I mean, it's just funny anything that comes out. Thank you for reminding me about Fiona Apple. Goat. Fuck yeah. And even just criminal, what is it? Because I'm feeling like a criminal and I need to be redeemed by the one I've sinned against because he's all I ever knew of love.

Fuck off. Oh, come on, do you know what I mean? That's how you write a song. Thank you for coming to work that day, Fiona, and, you know, impacting our lives forevermore. She's unreal. Final question? Yeah.

Let me see if I can get my bloody Billy Holiday in. I've got a Dave lyric as well. Hi, Makita and Jordan. My name's gay with an E from Chay. quite near Brighton. I love good song lyrics. Like the first time ever I saw your face, Roberta Flack, that's a good one.

And Into My Arms by Nick Cave, we had this played at my husband's funeral in 2022. We both loved it. Anyway, a question for you, is there a song you'd like played at your funeral? I hope that's not too sad a thought to have. I like somewhere only we know. by Keene, Jordan, I loved your book.

I was hooked, even if I am nearly twice your age. Nikita, you're wonderful. Bye for now. Why do I feel like crying? Why is that woman's voice so emotionally? She just let us know a lot about who she is and what she's been through. Oh my God. What a beautiful woman.

I feel like I'm just so happy that you listen to Miss Me and I just need to say thank you for listening. I'm so happy that we entertain you in any way. And also can I just say like somewhere only we know is one of those songs which has been obviously lily covered it there's there's it's been used a lot right and it falls into kind of like mainstream category maybe a little bit you know people might put it on like a dodgy carousel on Instagram in a context of a funeral that would break me yeah I'll be so real I'll be real right now you're like I look to cross in the context of a funeral I would be in absolute pieces I'm really happy that gay I'll say question. I hope it's not too sad. No, it's not sad. I think it's really important to talk about. It's a beautiful question. Yeah, really beautiful. It's a beautiful question. And thank you so much reading my book as well, that means more than you know, like, that is incredible. And I put your book up on my shelf yesterday when I was unpacking my books and I was like, it felt really good.

Thank you. I appreciate that. It's been, yeah, it's a journey. But look, um, it's, I don't have a song, um, into my arms as well. So can I just say, into my arms? What a shout as well. Yeah. Another great song. She's teaching. included it's just she's got a great oh this is just coming to my head sorry this is coming to my head i have to just include it quickly there's a lyric in fontaine's dc by fontaine's dc by by green and he says um sit beneath the light that suits you and think about a brighter future i just uh i just want to shout that out that is no that is gorgeous because it's also a multisyllabic rhyme oh it's gorgeous oh what's a multisyllabic rhyme like light that suits you brighter future is that

there's, there's, there's, it, the rhymes multi-syllabically. So like a monosyllabic rhyme would be like green and, uh, she, but like, but so I grew up in an era of rap music where the most impressive form of rap was to be as multisyllabic as possible. So you try and rhyme entire sentences, but that's kind of gone now. But, but good rappers still do it. That was hard in those battles. Yeah. In the old days. Yeah, literally, yeah. You know, that used to give me like actual anxiety freesty freestyles, freestyling. I hated it. Oh, yeah. I was just like,

What if they can't think of anything? No, but some freestyles, they say it's a freestyle, but they've written it done before. But, yeah, on the spot, there's some great freestallers from back in the day. But look, have you got a song for your funeral? Yeah, Barbara Streisand, Evergreen. When I read the Barber Strider's a book, and I can bore you with this now,

because Lily's sick of hearing about it. But I read it when we were in Kenya the first time. Barbara Streisand. See, again, she is more than that stupid piece of shit song. how dare you like not at the church of Streisand not here Piece of shit song

Absolute banger Piece of shit song How's it go Let's go What does he actually say And so we can remember What a stupid shit song it is It was a great era

Barra of Streisand That's what he says Duh Anyway Evergreen is a beautiful song When I read her book I realized that if you I was reading it and then if you listen on audio

every time she talks about one of the songs it plays it which I loved because we're not allowed to play music on Miss Meets hence terrible singing all the time sorry everyone but Evergreen is a beautiful song and in the video it's a portion of the film of A Star is Born

it's her and Chris Christopherson and he's a bit nervous about singing with her because they do it as a duet and she in the book talks about how like he really was nervous and she had to kind of keep keeping him in the zone and he just sings it so beautifully with her and it's a beautiful song and I'd like to be evergreen like a like a perennial plant that doesn't really die just keeps coming back like a cactus I don't know if that's true that's my dream no I guess it is a cactus never dies right just keeps coming back I'm not sure

like coming back I think that's the way we're losing each other a bit I don't know if I'm not sure if they're only immortal plants there are some immortal fish that So what's a perennial bloody plant then if it's not immortal? Maybe plants are immortal. I don't actually. No, that's actually insane. I've never thought about that. Can trees just, I mean, some trees have been alive for like 600 years.

Perennial plant. Yeah, the internet, the treatanet. Yeah, let's save that for trees. That's fungi, isn't it? I won't be able to talk about Billy Holiday Strange Fruit. Why? Oh, and that's our alarm to end this episode. I'll miss me.

No, it's call the groomers for Zedi. Strange fruit is a fucking ink. But she didn't write that, you know. No, it's in it a poem? It was given to her after a show, yeah. Oh, my God. And then she put music to her. Yeah, yeah.

That song is haunting. And obviously, Nina Simone's cover of it, especially haunting. I'm actually going to say the lyrics. Southern trees bear a strange fruit, blood on the leaves and blood at the root, black body swinging in the southern breeze, strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.

Is there anything more haunting? No, literally. not. I literally think that's most haunting song of all time. I'll tell you what, I actually don't have one, but my mum does, which is great. My mum told me very early on that if the time ever came at her funeral, she'd want me to play, should I stay or should I go by the clash. Oh, fuck yeah, Emma. That's how you end this episode. That's an exit. That is an exit strategy. It couldn't sum up my mum more, to be honest. But look, Honourable mentions for lyrics and maybe at my funeral

I'll play a song maybe by Celeste Celeste you know she's got some gorgeous lyrics strange it feels like something from another planet you know what I mean and she has the song strange what's it she goes strangers to friends friends and to lovers and strangers again

like those those lyrics crazy and then the final one will mention is Dave best encapsulation of he says at a very young age in psychodrama he said if you're thinking about doing it suicide doesn't stop the pain you're only moving it lives that you're ruining that blew my mind too

for such a young man to disgust. He was all but he was writing deep shit from a young age he is he is an incredible lyricist he is Dave's incredible and I don't know what song I'll play at my funeral I would like to think it's something more like my mom tongue in cheek you know maybe I'll play like um uh fuck I can't think on the spot like that

but well don't worry because no one's dying today let me know another time we are alive and it is your turn I'll play Barbara Streisand fuck you let's take my funeral song oh that one

what you mean what other one is there that one you can have it's your turn to think of a listen bitch subject can we please do dogs fuck sake all right

no if you've got something better no we can do dogs I've got babe I've got a hundred billion in dog stories? Are you fucking kidding me? The theme for next week's listen, bitch, is what, Jordan?

Dogs. You're so good at that. The fuck. Dogs. We love them. You love them. Let's talk about our shared love for our animals.

Obviously, you can, voice note, as by the way, please continue to tell us what you have for dinner. I don't care about a dinner thing, guys, I'll be real. I do.

I care. When you think of something that you care about, then you can ask the audience. 08,0304090. 08,0304090. Life path. Tell us your life path.

I might get a bit convoluted. Bye, Jordan. I love you. I really need to go to the loo. I can tell. See you later, Micah. I'm going to go to the Lou. Love you.

Bye, love you. Thanks for listening to Miss Me. This is a Persefonica production for BBC Sounds. Hello, I'm Amul Rajin, and from BBC Radio 4, this is radical. We are living through one of those hinge moments in history when all the old certainties crumble and a new world struggles to be born. So the idea behind this podcast is to help you navigate it. What's really changed is the volume of information.

That has exploded. and also by offering a safe space for the radical ideas that our future demands. Go to the Chancellor and say radically cut the taxes of those with children. Telling our stories is powerful and a radical act. Listen to Radical with Amul Rajan on BBC Sounds.