"This Song" Musical Analysis #2

 


Here is a link to the song

This Song-Conan Gray


About the Song

This Song by Conan Gray feels like a summer morning. Everytime I hear this song I think about driving to the lake with friends and blasting this in the car. This Song was released on May 30, 2025 and is one of the singles in Gray’s album, Wishbone. Gray is an American artist and both composed and wrote This Song himself. The song is described as “... a tender, emotionally vulnerable track that turns quiet longing into lyrical poetry”(Hayden 2025). This track illustrates a quiet love confession and a yearning for requited love.


Musical Analysis

The dynamic in the song stays about the same the whole song. There is not a lot of change in the volume. The song slightly slows during the bridge, which shifts the focus on the lyrics. 


The timbre in the song is heard throughout with the heavy guitar and drums. The timbre changes slightly during the chorus with addition of violin being layered with the other instruments. During the end of the song the guitar is layered with drums and is heard more clearly as the song slows down. The guitar is both being used to strum and pick, which creates contrast. The frequent use of the guitar also creates a whimsical and carefree feel to the song. 


The tempo throughout the song also stays relatively the same. Toward the end of the song during the bridge- “You know that I love you/ Is it dumb believing you might love me too” -the tempo slows down which allows for his voice and lyrics to be heard better. 


The melody, like the tempo and dynamic, has no dramatic shift. The melody stays rather the same throughout the song until it gets to the bridge. The bridge is where the melody slows down. The melody is repetitive but it allows for the listener to focus and connect with the lyrics. The lyrics sung are personal and describe things that happened in the relationship being sung about. “You're singing obnoxious, I'm laughing like spring/ Your brown racer jacket, my hands through the sleeves” This makes the song feel more intimate and relatable.


The form of This Song follows a basic pop structure, “This Song follows a classic pop structure: two verses, a repeating chorus, a bridge, and an outro”(Hayden). Although a song can feel flat for following this and being repetitive. I believe it is done well and meaningfully. The song's repetition creates an emphasis on his lyrics. “That I wrote this song about you/ Something I wish you knew/ Something I've tried to say/ But now I'll say it straight/ I wrote this song about you” This is a quiet confession of love. The song is mainly focusing on lyrics which give the songs its beauty.



 Sources

Gray, Conan.“This Song.” Wishbone, Republic Records, 2025. 

Hayden, Chaz. “This Song by Conan Gray: Song Review & Lyric Meaning.” Chaz Hayden, Chaz Hayden, 13 Aug. 2025, www.chazhayden.com/post/this-song-by-conan-gray-song-review-lyric-meaning. 

Olson, Samantha. “Conan Gray Masters the Art of Yearning in ‘This Song’ Lyrics.” Cosmopolitan, 30 May 2025, www.cosmopolitan.com/entertainment/music/a64895415/conan-gray-this-song-lyrics/. 


Comments

  1. Sally PetersFebruary 19, 2026 at 8:40 PM

    I really liked listening to this song! I love the timbre of the song and I think it mixes well with the light and happy sound of the song to show the true bittersweet feeling of the song. I really like how you point out that it follows a very typical pop song structure and I agree that it works well with the song and does not seem overly "pop". Overall, I think this is a great song and I agree with everything you said! I also like how you described how this song relates to you and the memories it brings up for you because it also helps me envision the song more clearly and I think that one of the most important things about a song is how it makes us feel and who we share the song with.

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  2. ABFebruary 19, 2026 at 10:14 PM

    Like the above comment, your description of the song really tied me into the music more than it otherwise would’ve. The imagery of driving to a lake with friends while playing “This Song” loudly really does sound great. I think my personal favorite part of the song is the intro before the lyrics hit. The general rhythm is very playful, yet the chords underneath give off a deeper undertone to the song. It really pairs well with the lyrics as they feel playful on the surface, but once you really hear what the artist is saying, it becomes a deep and sentimental song.

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