What do you think Sweet Hibiscus Tea means?

Penelope Scott: Sweet Hibiscus Tea Meaning

Album cover for Sweet Hibiscus Tea album cover

Sweet Hibiscus Tea Lyrics

Here's the thing, I can't do anything right
Try as I absolutely, totally might
The bones are melting, the skeleton is ash
The clavicle detaches and falls with a deafening crash
And I'm not your protagonist
I'm not even my own
I don't know...

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  1. 1TOP RATED

    #1 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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     Aug 20th 2021 !⃝

    I always thought this was about depression because if you listen to the words, it sounds like someone who has fallen in so deep to their depression their losing sight of reality. "I'm not your protagonist, I'm not even my own," many with depression struggle to feel like they have control of their life, meaning the "protagonist" in this case is just that control they feel they have lost. And "Waxy leaves," "glitching leaves," "the artificial way," when you fall deep into depression, stuff feels almost unreal, fake, artificial; to the point you question if life itself even is real anymore. And finally "my heart catches on every thorn, you're already halfway out the door" with depression you sometimes feel your heart is no longer a heart after all you've been through, but a beaten disfiguration of what used to be a beating thing, as well as that with depression it feels like you're all alone, hence why I put the whole thing here instead of just the heart part. But that could just be because I struggle with severe depression, who knows who's even right or wrong, any interpretations deserve to be heard.

  2. 2TOP RATED

    #2 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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     Jul 8th 2021 !⃝

    this song really symbolizes suffocating expectations of others to me. "here's the thing: I can't do anything right" it sounds like she's explaining to someone that she's nowhere near as capable as she is expected to be. and then just the weight of "I am not your protagonist, I'm not even my own". the listener cannot expect her to save them when she cannot save herself. this song really heavily resonates w only child and oldest sister vibes to me.

  3. 3TOP RATED

    #3 top rated interpretation:
    anonymous
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     Mar 7th 2021 !⃝

    The song is about moving to a new place and you haven’t quite made it your own yet. There’s a certain feeling of helplessness and simultaneous unrealness when you’ve moved and you don’t know how you feel about where you are. I absolutely love this song. when i first moved to my dads house i was absolutely devastated my first night there and despite feeling like i was lying in the middle of what felt like another dimension my most distinct memory of that first night is the hot cup of tea that they had made for me before i got there. i might’ve missed something about the song but this is at least the part about it that i picked up and focus on.

  4. anonymous
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     Jun 17th 2023 !⃝

    This is what I personally think when I hear the lyrics, I hear someone struggling hard,

    "The bones are melting, the skeleton is ash" I feel like she's basically saying she doesn't feel real or something, like she's disappearing, or like de-association? (Idk if I spelt that right), but that she doesn't feel real I guess

    "I am not your protagonist I'm not even my own" Saying that she doesn't have co trol over her life or futire.

    "I don't know anything, I don't even know why I don't know" She doesn't know what's happening and she can't figure out how to figure out what is happening

    "My heart catches on every thorn, you're already half way out the door" her heart catches feelings or gets attached to someone fast, and before sue knows it they're already leaving her.

    "And I have never looked so old and I've never been so cold" I feel like her saying shes never looked so old means that after someone probably important to her left, resulting in her crying for days, not getting out of bed, probably not sleeping well or at all and when that happens your eyes are red and might have some bags under the eyes, which can make you look a little old. And when you feel alone or get hurt by someone you had your trust in, you can become guarded and act "cold" or "rude" to people when they may not mean to.

    "And it is 85 degrees" Adding onto the last lyric, if feel like she's saying "Its 85°, so why do I feel so cold? "

    These are just my opinions and interpretation of some lyrics, which could be 100% wrong

  5. anonymous
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     Feb 4th 2023 !⃝

    To me it was about like loosing someone in life and loosing sense off reality because off the lyrics: "Artificial" And well so on, for the loosing someone part its the lyrics: "Your already halfway out the door" Maybe the protaganist off the song or what not lost a partner or a bestfriend?

  6. anonymous
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     Sep 20th 2022 !⃝

    I’ve always thought it was sort of a song about losing control over your life and you just don’t know what to do as well as being expected too much of everyone. The line “I am your protagonist I’m not even my own. I don’t know anything, I don’t even know what I don’t know” In my eyes it seemed as though she doesn’t know what to do with her life and everyone can’t expect her to save them if she can’t even save herself.

  7. anonymous
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     Nov 11th 2021 !⃝

    i believe that it’s about how we’re ruining the planet but humans always think “this little piece of trash won’t make a difference” but the fact of us just existing is ruining our plant and that humans were the most destructive thing that’s existed. which is why i think through the chorus she explains it how we don’t think anything of ourselves but of how much destruction we’re doing in reality. i also think that’s why there’s no blurred line from were ruining our world to i feel like i’m nothing to demonstrate the unawareness we have between our mark on the world

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  8. anonymous
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     Jul 21st 2021 !⃝

    A person whom lost in a war or something staring at the rubble of no man's land, and now their home town is being colonized.

    This interpretation has been marked as poor. view anyway
  9. anonymous
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     Mar 24th 2021 !⃝

    Originally, I thought it was about the environment deteriorating. “Waxy, glitching leaves, hot garbage pile, artificial, sunlight”


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