Song Review: "I Lived" by Onerepublic

After watching “I Lived” I felt as if I could do more to live my life to the fullest. The boy in the video is unfortunately affected by Cystic Fibrosis, yet he lives as if he does not have it. He does not let it get in the way of leading as close to a normal life as he can. The “I Lived” video by OneRepublic communicates a theme of living life to the fullest through the use of colors, objects, and location within the video. Through the use of dark and warm colors, OneRepublic communicates when there is a happy or sad moment within the song. OneRepublic, who wrote “I Lived” sang, “The only way you can know; You gave it all you had” used dark colors when Ryan Tedder sang these words producing the idea to the audience that this particular moment was a sad one as the boy put his mask on (1:54).

In the song and in life colors set the mood for many different things. When you are at a funeral everyone wears black setting a sad and mournful mood. When the boy is inside his room using his mask, it is dark as the sun is going down. Whereas when he is outside playing sports it is bright out, and he is living his life. Even in movies colors set the mood. Horror movies typically use darker colors to make the audience scared, but happy movies use bright colors and are usually outside making the audience feel safe and at peace. Andrew Baker, who wrote the article “Storytelling With Color” says, “You look at 'The Godfather,' and if you were to make it brighter so you could see the actors' faces better, it would take you out of that mood”, which supports the idea that color has an effect on the emotions of the audience within a video or movie “Storytelling”.

OneRepublic also uses objects to create an uplifting or downcast tone. When the boy puts on the mask the tone of the song gets dreary and sad. When the mask is on everything, even life seems to come to a halt. In an article, Bernhardt, mother of a child with Sanfilippo syndrome said, “sending Anna to a new school means a 35-minute round-trip bus ride every day -- and it would only accelerate her decline” using the bus to fabricate a downcast tone leading to the fact of her daughters decline if she rides the bus “Dying”. Later on, in the song the boy is riding his bike. When he is on his bike he feels alive. The bike gives him a sense of actually living his life as much as he can. He does not let anything get in his way. All there is, is him and the road ahead of him. He also likes to play hockey. Hockey is a team sport and being able to play that with his friends allows him to have a normal life.

Both the bike and the hockey stick create a lighthearted tone, revealing to the audience that he is in a happy state of mind, living his life to the absolute fullest. Finally, location plays an important role in communicating the idea of living life to the fullest. During the music video, the boy was sad and unhappy when he was inside. He would wear his mask looking outside yearning to get out and live his life, unconfined to the clutch of Cystic Fibrosis. Then when it was the next day and he was outside with his friends riding his bike and playing hockey, he was ecstatic and filled with joy. Joyce Chang, Editor-in-chief said, “Still, there's something so relaxing about savoring the smell of spices cooking on the stove, pouring a glass of wine, and the best part: getting to eat the finished product” which is how she lives a happy life in her dark or sad times “Positive”. When she comes home she finds happiness in cooking. Being in her kitchen is how she relaxes and brings peace to the end of a stressful day. When anyone is going through a hard time in life, finding something that makes you happy is important because it is how you live your life.

This is similar to what OneRepublic conveys through the song “I Lived”, because the boy in the video found that thing that made him happy and used it to live a happy life. Cystic Fibrosis is an infectious disease that leaves the airways and other organs blocked with mucus. This makes breathing very hard and leaves the patient prone to pneumonia and bronchitis. Another affect in males is that it can cause male infertility. Treatment to Cystic Fibrosis is minimal. There are three treatments including a vibrating vest to clear the mucus, a breathing mask to inhale medicines, lastly dietary supplements. There is no cure to Cystic Fibrosis, but exercise like cycling is good to help one’s breathing. CF is a disease that is typically found and diagnosed in young age. The following talks about a boy who was diagnosed with it very young and has learned to live with this disease. He has learned to live with it through enjoying physical activities such as riding his bike and playing hockey with all of his friends. His cycling team raced to raise money to help research in Cystic Fibrosis.

To conclude, this paper was about living life to the fullest even when things are in your way, do not let them keep you from living. “I Lived” by OneRepublic fabricates a message of living life with no boundaries through the use of objects, location in the video, and colors. So, after reading this and watching “I Lived” by OneRepublic do not let anything get in the way of you living your life to the absolute fullest. When times are hard and push you down, it is your choice to stay down or get back up. All of this can be compared with one who lets their issues keep them knocked down, giving up on trying, and not getting anywhere. Or one who breaks through their cage and accomplishes their dreams. Do not confuse living life to the fullest with plain stupidity, like making poor decisions as it could come with many different consequences. Living life to the fullest looks like someone who goes out past their comfort zones and finds happiness in something. Acting on what makes them happy and pursuing a joyful, lighthearted, and happy life.