To Last – English Lyrics

• By: Tyla

Lyrics & Translation

While Tyla's music is heavily influenced by South African Amapiano, a genre rich with rhythmic complexity, "To Last" offers an accessible entry point through its relatable, heartbreaking story delivered with smooth R&B vocals. Listening to this song allows users to connect emotionally while subtly absorbing the unique sonic textures of the emerging 'Popiano' sound, showcasing Tyla's versatility.

[English]

(gentle music)

♪ Never thought you'd be that way ♪

♪ Holding on to every small mistake ♪

♪ Can't beg for love to stay ♪

♪ Never thought you'd be my first heartbreak ♪

♪ Don't know what more to say ♪

♪ Family asking, "Where on earth you've been" ♪

♪ Can't beg for love to stay ♪

♪ My first love is now my first heartbreak ♪

♪ You never gave us a chance ♪

♪ It's like you never wanted to last ♪

♪ You never gave us a chance ♪

♪ It's like you never wanted to last ♪

♪ To last, to last, to last, to last ♪

♪ To last, to last, to last, to last ♪

♪ To last, to last, to last, to last ♪

♪ To last, to last, to last ♪

(upbeat music)

♪ Ripped away a part of me ♪

♪ You left me here to bleed ♪

♪ It's the way you say, "Baby, please hold on to me" ♪

♪ Don't want you to be a memory ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ You never gave us a chance ♪

♪ It's like you never wanted to last ♪

♪ Oh ♪

♪ You never gave us a chance ♪

♪ It's like you never wanted to last ♪

♪ To last, to last ♪

(upbeat music continues)

(upbeat music continues continues)

♪ To last, to last, to last, to last ♪

Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary	Meanings
love /lʌv/ A1	noun - a deep affection for someone or something verb - to feel deep affection for someone
heartbreak /ˈhɑːrtˌbreɪk/ C1	noun - a feeling of great sadness caused by love loss
chance /tʃæns/ B1	noun - an opportunity or possibility
last /læst/ A2	verb - to continue for a period of time
family /ˈfæmɪli/ A1	noun - a group of related people, especially parents and children
memory /ˈmɛməri/ B1	noun - the ability to remember or something remembered
bleed /bliːd/ B2	verb - to lose blood from the body
hold /hoʊld/ A2	verb - to keep something in your hands or arms
baby /ˈbeɪbi/ A1	noun - a very young child; also a term of endearment
mistake /mɪˈsteɪk/ B1	noun - an action or judgment that is wrong
ripped /rɪpt/ B2	verb - past tense of ‘rip’; to tear something quickly
small /smɔːl/ A1	adjective - not large; tiny
first /fɜːrst/ A1	adjective - coming before all others in time or order
give /ɡɪv/ A1	verb - to hand over or provide something to someone
left /lɛft/ A2	verb - past tense of ‘leave’; to go away from a place
stay /steɪ/ A2	verb - to remain in the same place
ask /æsk/ A2	verb - to request information or an answer

Key Grammar Structures

• Never thought you'd be that way

  ➔ Future in the past (would + infinitive)

  ➔ The contraction "you'd" (= you would) expresses a future situation imagined from a past viewpoint.

• Holding on to every small mistake

  ➔ Gerund phrase (present participle)

  ➔ "Holding" is a gerund functioning as a noun and expresses a continuous action.

• Can't beg for love to stay

  ➔ Negative modal + bare infinitive + infinitive of purpose

  ➔ "Can't" is the negative form of "can" followed by the bare infinitive "beg"; "to stay" shows the purpose of the begging.

• You never gave us a chance

  ➔ Simple past negative with "never"

  ➔ "Never" emphasizes that the action "gave" did not happen at any time in the past.

• It's like you never wanted to last

  ➔ Comparative clause introduced by "like"

  ➔ "like" introduces a comparison, followed by the clause "you never wanted to last".

• You left me here to bleed

  ➔ Infinitive of purpose after a verb

  ➔ "to bleed" explains why the speaker was left there; it functions as an infinitive of purpose.

• Don't want you to be a memory

  ➔ Verb "want" + object + infinitive

  ➔ "want" is followed by the object "you" and the infinitive phrase "to be a memory".

• I don't know what more to say

  ➔ Interrogative noun clause with "what" + infinitive

  ➔ "what more to say" is an embedded question acting as the object of "know"; the infinitive "to say" follows "what".