Penelope has stated that this is one of the few songs she has written from a different person’s perspective. She is writing from the perspective of a young doctor in the United States, as a critique of the American healthcare system.
[Verse 1]
When I was seven years old
I saw a dead man in the road
Outside the liquor store a few blocks from my school
Well he was cold and he was warm
He looked the damn same as before
Except for something in the eyes and a bit of drool
[Pre-Chorus]
Well, people die every day
I wouldn't have it any other way
I just think they should feel good while they are alive
I went to school I got good grades
I don't know you want me to say
Tell me faster 'cause you're running out of time
[Chorus]
I wanted to help people
I thought that I could save the sick
And if it's all the same to you
There's one more thing I got to do
Because with god as my witness
You corporate fucking prick
I did not become a doctor just to suck the devil's dick
[Verse 2]
I made it though all four years
And then almost a decade more
I asked the right questions
And never even really got bored
They hired me in my hometown
And then again when I moved away
People liked me back then
What can I say?
[Verse 3]
It was the government
The companies, bureaucracy
The lobbyists, the congressmen, and lies
They trickled into both my ears
And got louder over the years
Until all that I could hear was fucking flies
[Pre-Chorus]
Well, people die every day
I wouldn't have it any other way
I just think they should feel okay while they're alive
How could they ever feel okay
When things are more and more this way?
Sometimes it's like they'd rather die
[Chorus]
I fucking helped people
I thought that I could do the trick
And if it's all the same to you
There's one more thing I got to do
Because with god as my witness
You corporate piece of shit
I did not become a doctor just to suck the devil's dick
American Healthcare was written by Penelope Scott.
American Healthcare was produced by Penelope Scott.
Penelope Scott released American Healthcare on Wed May 13 2020.