"Chandelier"

I never finished my analysis for the fourth mentor text (N, O, P, or Q) but instead I did one for my own mentor text: Chandelier.

Sia Kate Isobelle Furler, also known as Sia, is an Australian singer/song-writer who has captured the attention of many young adults in the past couple of years, especially since her collaboration with Maddie Ziegler, former Dance Moms star. In 2014 Sia released the official music video to her song Chandelier. With the simplicity yet the intercut dancing that Maddie Ziegler performs give a very intense feeling with lots of dramatic movements. At first glance, Sia’s song has a somewhat uplifting feeling, ‘live life to the fullest,’ ‘seize the day,’ ‘go out and party,’ yet there are a couple of lines that could potentially have a dual feeling/meaning. When she says, ‘I’m going to live like tomorrow doesn’t exist,’ could have the best night ever or if you look deeper into it, it could be saying why live because tomorrow just might not come. This song turns out to be about Sia’s life and her struggle with addiction and depression. It’s her personal experience and it telling the world about when she was a ‘party girl’. Chandelier is how Sia depicts the ‘party girl’ life that she lived through and the struggles that she faced. The repetition is almost ironic in how she constantly uses alcohol to numb her feelings, ‘throwing ‘em back’. It’s the cycle and it can’t be broken. Through Maddie’s dancing, her intense facial expressions and dramatic hand movements it shows what Sia can’t solely through singing. This is just another way Sia is expressing her emotions. It’s intense and real, and in a way through her personal experiences and using a young well known dancer engages the audience in a different yet specific way.