| “ | I wrote this song about my birth dad. I always had a complicated relationship with him, and I felt like it was in his death that we actually grew closest. I had more compassion and understanding for who he was, and came to understand why he couldn’t show up for me the way that I had always wanted him to. When a butterfly came right up to my finger on Father’s Day last year, around the anniversary of his passing, I knew I had to write a song about it. My favorite lyric is ‘You were never really graceful/Now you’re just what you’re supposed to be.’ It perfectly explains my dad’s transition from life to death. I feel like he became graceful and delicate in a way that he was never able to be on earth. | ” |
— Demi on Butterfly
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"Butterfly" is the eighteenth track from Demi Lovato's seventh studio album, Dancing With The Devil... The Art Of Starting Over. It was released on April 2, 2021, by Island Records.
Background[]
“Butterfly” is a song about Demi’s late father, who passed away in June 2013. Less than a week after they found out, they went on Good Morning America to discuss his death and announce The Lovato Treatment Scholarship Program in honor of him. The very next day, they performed for the show’s Summer Concert Series, which they mentioned later was not nearly enough time to properly mourn. Over the years, they continued to feel conflicted over how to feel about his death. In 2020, they revealed in a Vogue article that they had written a gratitude letter to their father, finally releasing all of their resentment towards him. On August 6, 2020, Demi posted on an Instagram story that they were writing “Butterfly.” Butterflies became one of the main themes of the album. [1]
Lyrics[]
[Verse 1]
Used to dread the month of June
'Cause it reminded me of you
And always came around too soon, not anymore
A part of me I had to find
'Cause it was killin' me inside
Yeah, you were always like a bye I wasn't ready for
[Pre-Chorus]
Yeah, I figured this was something I deal with my whole life
Stop pushin' my past to the side
This is what it's 'posed to feel like
Now I look up and I see you in the sky
[Chorus]
Butterfly, butterfly, butterfly
Butterfly, butterfly, butterfly
Butterfly, butterfly, butterfly
High
[Verse 2]
Forgiveness is the hardest truth
It's something that you have to choose
Well, at least I got my heart from you, that much I'm grateful for
I know because you lie and taught me 'bout honesty, honesty
You leave and gave me my loyalty, loyalty
I'm growin' into who I'm meant to be, yeah
No more lookin' for a sign
[Pre-Chorus]
This is something I deal with my whole life
Stop pushin' my past to the side
This is what it's 'posed to feel like
Now I look up and I see you in the sky
[Chorus]
Butterfly, butterfly, butterfly (Butterfly)
Butterfly, butterfly, butterfly
Butterfly, butterfly, butterfly (Ah)
High
[Bridge]
Oh, it was painful, it was needed
See you changin' right in front of me
You were never really graceful
Now you're just what you're supposed to be
I can feel you, like I need to
I can see you, flyin' over me
Flyin' over me, oh
[Chorus]
Butterfly, butterfly, butterfly
Butterfly, butterfly
References
Dancing With The Devil... The Art Of Starting Over | |||||||
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Credits · Certifications · Charts
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