Don't Let Me Down – English Lyrics

• By: Hanson, Zach Myers
• Album: Red Green Blue

Lyrics & Translation

Learning a language is about pushing past your comfort zone, a theme perfectly captured in Hanson's "Don't Let Me Down." This song, with its clear and motivational English lyrics, can be a great tool for learners to pick up empowering vocabulary and practice pronunciation with its catchy, anthemic chorus. What makes this song special is its raw, personal message of overcoming self-doubt, a universal feeling that resonates whether you're learning a new skill or facing a life-changing moment.

[English]

I don't fight the feeling

it's happening

I steady your hand

to settle on your seat

The fear that you might fail

Is like venom in your blood

In a moment you might freeze

But the voice is in your head screaming

Don't let me down

Right on the precipice the rest of your life

All you can hear is the sound

Of everything that you've been through that's led you to now

They can't take your crown

Your moment is now

Walk through the door

and take your place

No time for questions

'cause now you're in the game

You can't let the rats consume you

Spit you out and tear you apart

Let your devil on your shoulder

Just a voice and it won't stop 'til you don't let me down

It's not a question of whether you're ready

Only of what you'll allow

Everything in your life it has brought you to now

The moment is now

And it courses through your veins

And you're feeling it like a drum

No one can stop you until you decide you're done

The moment is now

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
feeling /ˈfiːlɪŋ/ B1	noun - an emotional state or reaction
fear /fɪər/ B1	noun - an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous
venom /ˈvɛnəm/ C1	noun - a poisonous substance produced by animals such as snakes and spiders
blood /blʌd/ A2	noun - the red liquid that circulates in the arteries and veins of humans and other vertebrates
moment /ˈməʊmənt/ B1	noun - a very brief period of time
freeze /friːz/ B1	verb - to become hardened into ice; to become motionless because of fear or shock
voice /vɔɪs/ A2	noun - the sound produced in a person's larynx and spoken out
precipice /ˈprɛsɪpɪs/ C1	noun - a very steep cliff or the edge of a high place
crown /kraʊn/ B2	noun - a circular ornamental headdress worn by a monarch
game /ɡeɪm/ A2	noun - an activity that one engages in for amusement or competition
consume /kənˈsjuːm/ B2	verb - to eat, drink, or use up something
devil /ˈdɛvl/ B2	noun - an evil spirit or a person regarded as wicked
shoulder /ˈʃoʊldər/ B1	noun - the part of the body between the neck and the arm
ready /ˈrɛdi/ A2	adjective - prepared for something; willing to do something
decide /dɪˈsaɪd/ B1	verb - to make a choice or come to a conclusion about something
veins /veɪnz/ B2	noun - blood vessels that carry blood toward the heart
drum /drʌm/ A2	noun - a percussion instrument consisting of a hollow shell with a membrane stretched over one or both ends
scream /skriːm/ B1	verb - to shout loudly, especially in fear, pain or excitement noun - a loud, sharp cry

Key Grammar Structures

• I don't fight the feeling, it's happening

  ➔ Present continuous tense

  ➔ The phrase "it's happening" uses the present continuous tense to describe an action occurring now.

• The fear that you might fail

  ➔ Relative clause

  ➔ The phrase "that you might fail" is a relative clause modifying "fear", providing more information about it.

• But the voice is in your head screaming

  ➔ Present continuous tense with 'be'

  ➔ The phrase "is screaming" uses the present continuous tense with 'be' to describe an ongoing action.

• All you can hear is the sound

  ➔ Emphatic structure with 'all'

  ➔ The phrase "All you can hear is the sound" uses an emphatic structure to highlight the exclusivity of the sound.

• They can't take your crown

  ➔ Modal verb 'can't' for inability

  ➔ The phrase "can't take" uses the modal verb 'can't' to express inability or impossibility.

• Let your devil on your shoulder

  ➔ Personification

  ➔ The phrase "devil on your shoulder" uses personification to give human characteristics to an abstract concept.

• It's not a question of whether you're ready

  ➔ Negative construction with 'It's not...of'

  ➔ The phrase "It's not a question of" introduces a negative construction to emphasize what is not being questioned.

• And you're feeling it like a drum

  ➔ Simile

  ➔ The phrase "like a drum" is a simile comparing the intensity of feeling to the sound of a drum.