Wear the mask

So wear the mask
Play the part
Of someone harder in the heart
And never someone, easy to break

Another day
Another show with no rehearsal
Another way I'm probably gonna make it worse
For the person next to me

What do you expect of me
'Cause in my head
You think less of me, it's stressing me
A self-fulfilling prophecy

I'll wear a brittle grin
I'll get a little in my own head
Try to work out what I misread
What I got wrong

I'll weave myself into a new shape for you
Twist the corners of mouth when you're around
Hang on every word that you say, your performer
No more than a clown

I'll live in the spotlight
Not getting it quite right
And when I mess up it'll keep me up all night
Stuck in a loop of fight or flight

I feel the safest under porcelain and paint
Smile forcing through the pain
I'm only here to entertain

Hard to say
What remains
When I stumble off of the stage
Does the one behind the role still have a face

So wear the mask
Play the part
Of someone harder in the heart
And never someone, easy to break

Just a facsimile
Of what a person's meant to be
So pull the ribbon, I'll unravel
Always hiding something fragile

Da da-da-da-da-da-da-da
Da da-da-da-da-da-da
Da da-da-da

At even the slightest sleight, I'm letting it slip
Feeling it chip
Feel it unraveling
Follow the script

I'm losing my words
Losing my temper
Out of the energy just to remember
It's all in my head

I start to crack under the pressure
Another lesson that I'll never measure
Up, either way I feel stuck, if I keep it bottled up
It's gonna hit me like a truck

Thought I finally figured out the face
To make to make you make the
Face you wanna make
But I can only take a little till I break

Oh, there it goes
Sound the alarm we're completely exposed
Emotional short-circuit
More hurt than it should've been possible

Fully illogical
Think I'm responsible for those around me
Like I've been crowned the all-accountable
God of working out these
Emotional needs, communicatively

Defeated and fatigued, I try but I can't be
The kind of perfectly, constructed person
For your service need to earn
My place on earth
It's how you see me that determines what I'm worth

So wear the mask
Play the part
Of someone harder in the heart
And never someone, easy to break

Just a facsimile
Of what a person's meant to be
So pull the ribbon, I'll unravel
Always hiding something fragile

Hard to tell, hard to see
Is the show for you or me
Just a way to be
Relieved of all responsibility

Where does it end, where do I start
Am I the face and not the heart
Am I actor of the year
Or just the part?

Hold it in, hold it tight
Fake a smile, get it right
If you wanna make it through
Then act like you believe it too

Stay in line, stay in place
Are they looking at your face
If you crack under the pressure
Gonna lose them all forever

Hold it in, hold it tight
Fake a smile, get it right
If you wanna make it through
Then act like you believe it too

Stay in line, stay in place
Are they looking at your face
If you crack under the pressure
Gonna lose them all forever

Hold it in, hold it tight
Fake a smile, get it right
If you wanna make it through
Then act like you believe it too

Stay in line, stay in place
Are they looking at your face
If you crack under the pressure
Gonna lose them all forever

So wear the mask
Play the part
Of someone harder in the heart
And never someone, easy to break

Just a facsimile
Of what a person's meant to be
So pull the ribbon, I'll unravel
Always hiding something fragile

Da da-da-da-da-da-da-da
Da da-da-da-da-da-da
Da da-da-da