Three Days Grace: Expectations Meaning

Expectations Lyrics

Baby, innocence
Is one day gonna be decadence
Prom Queen, Miss America
In the backseat in a pair of cuffs
Sixteen, little runaway
From the Five-O and you got away
From a small town with no scene
Looking for a shot on the big...

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   #1 top rated interpretation:
   Leberist

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   Oct 30th 2012 !⃝

   This song deals with the idea that expectations never really pan out the way we want them to. In the lyrics, Gontier sings about a girl that ran away from home at sixteen looking to make it big in the movie industry. She's running from the police. Eventually, she ends up in some town "with no scene," where she's living large with some deadbeat guy. Then one day, she bought a winning lottery ticket - her chance of escape. But her boyfriend steals it from her and once again, her expectations are shot down. This girl expected to Prom Queen, she dreamed of one day being Miss America, but her expectations quite honestly go to hell. When Gontier sings, "never be Miss America in the backseat in a pair of cuffs," he means don't let your expectations get so large and unattainable that they lead you in the wrong direction.

2. 2TOP RATED

   #2 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Apr 17th 2013 !⃝

   Expectations is plain and simply about how one girls chance of doing what she wanted, got smashed. She ran away from home hoping to make it big in the movie industry. She went to a small town with "no scene", got together with a guy, the lyrics stating the guy only wanting her for sex. Later she buys a lottery ticket. Sitting on the couch with her boyfriend, she falls asleep, the boyfriend watches tv, finds out the lottery is a winner, steals the ticket, her car and then leaves her. Later in the song it states "in the back seat in a pair of cuffs" and that is because she tried to kill her "ex"-boyfriend and obviously was caught.
3. anonymous

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   Nov 9th 2017 !⃝

   Expectations is about a girl who set her goals high to try and get into the music industry, she ran away at sixteen when she found the shot went to a town with 'no scene' met her deadbeat boyfriend who was just for sex. She then wanted to be rich so she bought a lottery ticket, she fell asleep and her boyfriend 'watched the ball drop.' 'She never woke up' is the intention is that the deadbeat boyfriend killed her then stole her car and money.
4. anonymous

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   Nov 26th 2016 !⃝

   I feel like this song is sending off the same message as "Just Like You" saying let me live my life, leave me alone or I'm gonna turn out crooked, but I also feel like it's saying that this girl set goals that were too far out of reach and ended up getting burned.
5. anonymous

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   Nov 19th 2016 !⃝

   I agree with the anonymous guy that wrote "This song deals with the idea that expectations never really pan out the way we want them to. In the lyrics..." but I thought to myself: how could she be a runaway and also rice? when i understood she became a slut "one day gonna be decadence" and a thief "runaway from the Five-O". I think she did that to try another shot to succeed greatly and ones again her expectation went to hell
   
   but no matter what that song means this song is awsome!! one of the best for three days grace!
6. anonymous

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   Jan 17th 2016 !⃝

   Awesome.
7. anonymous

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   Jun 14th 2015 !⃝

   My idea of this song's meaning is that expectations have gone to hell. Our generation and society is so messed up, that people are corrupt to do something like the girl's boyfriend in the song. Granted, our generation is more accepting of different lifestyles and cultures. But this generation does a terrible job of using any morality or common sense or logic or anything of that kind. You need to stay alert, cause you might be that girl who bought a winning lottery ticket, only to have your "boyfriend", someone you cared for, stole it from you when you were sleeping.
8. anonymous

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   Feb 24th 2015 !⃝

   Considering this was one of their songs after they moved from Canada to America, I'd say they were hoping more from America than what they really got. Of you thunk that's not it, then I'd love to know what you think. I've seen some that could he it but I'm sticking with mine.
9. anonymous

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   Jun 6th 2013 !⃝

   This song has a double meaning, one is that your expectations don't pan out the right way another could be a rejection of expectations placed on you, sort of like telling the expectations to go to hell. Which was what I thought when I first heard it (all I could understand was the chorus at first)
10. anonymous

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    Oct 8th 2012 !⃝

    This song is about a girl looking to be famous, but doesn't have the things she needs to attract attention from agents. So she takes drastic steps which leads to, "In the backseat(of a police car) in a pair of cuffs." Not everything that you expect is going to happen

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