"Somewhere I Belong" is a song by the band Linkin Park. It is the third track from their 2003 album Meteora.
Background[]
The band wrote over 40 different versions of the chorus, each time rewriting to get the sound right. However, in the final stretch of recording the album, Chester got sick and was forced to finish his parts in NYC while Andy Wallace was mixing the rest of the album.
The opening sample is a clip of Chester Bennington playing guitar, which was reversed by Mike Shinoda before being cut up so that the chord progression remained intact. There is a clip in Frat Party at the Pankake Festival (which was released in 2001) that shows Mike Shinoda playing the sample. (What is a reversed version of the intro).
During the Projekt Revolution 2004 shows, Linkin Park played a different intro to this song, with Brad Delson playing a guitar riff while Rob Bourdon played a new drum intro. This has become standard in their 2007 Minutes to Midnight Tour.
In 2013, on LPU 13, Linkin Park released a demo of the song with the title "Pretty Birdy". The title "Pretty Birdie" is seen on the red song board in the NRG studio space while recording the album. Phoenix plays golf. In golf, "Birdie" is one stoke under par, so it's possible this is the reason for the name change from "Birdy" to "Birdie" at some point.
Music video[]
The music video for "Somewhere I Belong" was directed by Joseph Hahn and shot in January 2003. It shows the band playing the song in a Salvador Dalí-style scenario. It was awarded as Best Rock Video at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards.
The doors, in what is supposedly Bennington's room, has the Japanese characters for fire and water written, which represents the waterfall and burning fire behind Shinoda while rapping.
Linkin Park - Somewhere I Belong
Personnel[]
- Chester Bennington - lead vocals
- Mike Shinoda - vocals (rapping and backup), rhythm guitar, keyboard
- Brad Delson - lead guitar
- Dave Farrell - bass
- Rob Bourdon - drums
- Joe Hahn - turntables, samples
- Don Gilmore - producer
Track listing[]
- "Somewhere I Belong" [Single Version] - 3:35
- "Step Up" [Live Projekt Revolution Tour 2002] - 4:15
- "My December" [Live Projekt Revolution Tour 2002] - 4:27
Lyrics[]
When this began
I had nothing to say
And I'd get lost in the nothingness inside of me
I was confused
And I let it all out to find that I'm
Not the only person with these things in mind
Inside of me
But all the vacancy the words revealed
Is the only real thing that I've got left to feel
Nothing to lose
Just stuck
Hollow and alone
And the fault is my own
And the fault is my own
I want to heal
I want to feel
What I thought was never real
I want to let go of the pain I've held so long
[Erase all the pain 'til it's gone]
I want to heal
I want to feel
Like I'm close to something real
I want to find something I've wanted all along
Somewhere i belong
And I've got nothing to say
I can't believe I didn't fall right down on my face
I was confused
Looking everywhere only to find
That it's not the way i had imagined it all in my mind
So what am I
What do I have but negativity
'Cause i can't justify the
Way everyone is looking at me
Nothing to lose
Nothing to gain
Hollow and alone
And the fault is my own
The fault is my own
I want to heal
I want to feel
What I thought was never real
I want to let go of the pain I've held so long (Erase all the pain 'til it's gone)
I want to heal
I want to feel
Like I'm close to something real
I want to find something I've wanted all along
Somewhere i belong
I will never know
Myself until I do this on my own
And I will never feel
Anything else until my wounds are healed
I will never be
Anything 'til I break away from me
And I will break away
I'll find myself today
I want to heal
I want to feel
What I thought was never real
I want to let go of the pain I've held so long (Erase all the pain 'til it's gone)
I want to heal
I want to feel
Like I'm close to something real
I want to find something I've wanted all along
Somewhere I belong (I want to heal, I want to feel like I'm)
Somewhere I belong (I want to heal, I want to feel like I'm)
Somewhere I belong...
Somewhere I belong...
Trivia[]
- Despite the fact that this song is only 3 minutes and 34 seconds, it is the longest song on Meteora.