I-I-I-I've Got A Migraine

Migraine by twenty one pilots.

Am I the only one I know waging my wars behind my face and above my throat?

This is the first lyric that strikes me in this catchy, transcendent hip-hop tune by one of my favorites, twenty one pilots (yes, they do spell their name with all lowercase letters).

Where, exactly, does he mean...? "Behind my face and above my throat"....? In his mind! 

Throughout the song, that becomes obvious. He tells us what he's feeling up there in his noggin (pain that "ranges from up, down, and sideways" and that "sometimes death seems better than the migraine in his [my] head"). In the second verse, he hollers that he is "not as fine as he seems" and then excuses himself for yelling. He even describes his forehead as a "door that holds back Pandora's Box."

Whoa. 

All of those clever little lyric snippets above are things I carry with me. They come up in every day situations. 

This morning, for instance, when I woke up with a throbbing in my skull, I nearly wanted to studder, "I-I-I-I have a migraine!"

I love the way twenty one pilots has a way of engaging my senses. And he is so relatable! I often find myself nodding in agreement as he, so honestly, describes things that I am currently feeling. 

This song - as well as much of twenty one pilots' music - follows a sort of melancholy theme. Nothing is sugar coated. What you hear is what you get!

.....But I still feel like we are offered a resolution when each chorus comes to a close and the melody brightens a little.

Shadows may scream that I'm alone, but I know that we've made it this far.....kid.

It's like the clouds part and the sun comes out - if only for a second. It's the little bit of optimism we need amidst the story of struggle.

Is he referring to a friend or a lover that has made it through a fair share of struggles with him in this lyric? ....Maybe.

Is he talking solely about himself? 

Possible.

I feel like these lyrics are up for your own personal interpretation.

But, for me, he is talking about himself. Maybe he sometimes feels alone in his struggles, but when he considers how far he's come and the triumphs he has had against the odds, he knows that he can pull through one more time.