Posted by Beyoncé is back with her 8th album, Cowboy Carter, and many songs with fascinating lyrics: let’s analyze the meaning of Daughter.
Beyoncé finally dropped her new album in March 2024: Cowboy Carter is made of 27 new songs and many hints that can open a secret window into the singer’s private life and thoughts. The official singles, Texas Hold ‘Em and 16 Carriages, were out in February, but now fans are curious to know more about all the other songs. One particular track stands out, Daughter, with its beautiful melody and cryptic lyrics, hiding a mysterious meaning. Let’s analyze it in this article: you’ll also find the official lyrics video and the complete lyrics at the end.
Daughter: the lyrics meaning
Daughter is a stream of consciousness of Beyoncé’s darkest fantasies: in the lyrics, the singer talks with God, exposing her involuntary thoughts and asking Him to help her, cleansing her mind and behavior.
The most cryptic part of the song is in the beginning:
Your body laid out on these filthy floors
Your bloodstains on my custom coutures
Bathroom attendant let me right in
She was a big fan
I really tried to stay cool
But your arrogance disturbed my solitude
Now I ripped your dress and you’re all black and blue
Look what you made me do
Fans have wondered what these lyrics mean and if they belong to Beyoncé’s experience. However, the singer is describing a subconscious thought: in this private fantasy, she lost control and beat another woman to death. The victim’s blood is on her dress. The symbolic image of Beyoncé claims she was bothered by her arrogance, which made her react (“look what you made me do”). She also says that “she was a big fan,” implying that, in her mind, this woman was probably one of the singer’s followers.
Of course, nothing of that is real. It’s just one of those inexplicable things coming from our psyche, maybe a wild dream. Beyoncé is ashamed of this, as it often happens when we have evil thoughts we cannot control. That’s why she asks for help from God in the chorus.
Help me, Lord, from these fantasies in my head
They ain’t ever been safe ones
I don’t fellowship with these fake ones
So let’s travel to whitе chapels and sing hymns
Hold rosaries, and sing in stained glass symphonies
Cleanse me, Holy Trinity, from this marijuana smoke smell in my hair
The song became famous because it includes a portion of the popular arietta Caro Mio Ben. It’s sung in Italian: it was written in 1783, and the author is not certain (it’s usually ascribed to the Italian composer Tommaso Giordani). Below you will find the Italian lyrics and the translation in English:
Caro mio ben
Credimi almen
Senza di te
Languisce il cor
Il tuo fedel
Sospira ognor
Cessa, crudel
Tanto rigor
My dear beloved
Believe me at least
Without you
The heart languishes
Your faithful one
Always sighs
Cease, cruel one
So much rigor
Overall, the song presents a fascinating vision: Beyoncé feels dirty behind God’s eyes and asks Him for mercy. She prays, dedicates her time, her life to God, because those negative thoughts make her feel unsafe, in danger. She also believes this is a personality trait she inherited from her father: a cold character, different from what we think good behavior should be. From this point of view, the daughter mentioned in the song title is her.
They keep sayin’ that I ain’t nothin’ like my father
But I’m the furthest thing from choir boys and altars
If you cross me, I’m just like my father
I am colder than Titanic water
With Daughter, Beyoncé is generously sharing with us something extremely private: the fantasies we are all ashamed of, the uncontrolled thoughts we all have, and never confess to anyone. We shouldn’t take Daugther lyrics literally: the song’s meaning is about seeking mercy for our darkest side, the shadow we want to control. It’s what we always try to do in life, and it’s one of the most challenging and meaningful goals for our personal growth. If there is something we need God for, that’s undoubtedly to become better people.
Read other popular song lyrics and their meaning on Auralcrave
The official streaming and the complete lyrics
Your body laid out on these filthy floors
Your bloodstains on my custom coutures
Bathroom attendant let me right in
She was a big fan
I really tried to stay cool
But your arrogance disturbed my solitude
Now I ripped your dress and you’re all black and blue
Look what you made me do
They keep sayin’ that I ain’t nothin’ like my father
But I’m the furthest thing from choir boys and altars
If you cross me, I’m just like my father
I am colder than Titanic water
Help me, Lord, from these fantasies in my head
They ain’t ever been safe ones
I don’t fellowship with these fake ones
So let’s travel to whitе chapels and sing hymns
Hold rosaries, and sing in stained glass symphonies
Cleanse me, Holy Trinity, from this marijuana smoke smell in my hair
I sashayed my dress
Did my best impression of a damsel in distress
This alcohol and smell of regret
Allured my catch
Outfit too small to hide my scars
Feelin’ bottled up like bottle service broads
How long can he hold his breath
Before his death?
Caro mio ben
Credimi almen
Senza di te
Languisce il cor
Il tuo fedel
Sospira ognor
Cessa, crudel
Tanto rigor
Help me, Lord, from these fantasies in my head
They ain’t ever been safe ones
I don’t fellowship with these fake ones
So let’s travel to white chapels and sing hymns
Hold rosaries, sing in stained glass symphonies
Cleanse me, Holy Trinity, from this marijuana smoke smell in my hair
Say I’m nothin’ like my father
But I’m the furthest thing from choir boys and altars
Double cross me, I’m just like my father
I am colder than Titanic water
