The song “Same Love” is written and performed by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, and is featuring Mary Lambert. Same Love portrays powerful messages and important morals through the lyrics, and is very relatable to today’s society and to the LGBT community. Strong themes of identity, stereotypes, discrimination, and inequality are carried through the verses and are related back to the writer, Macklemore, as he tells the story of how as a young boy, he thought he was gay. Although a song, Same Love still has many recurring morals, such as proving that you can’t change who you are, and that you should embrace it rather than being ashamed, despite what people may say or think about you. Same Love also shows how quick we are to categorise and follow stereotypes, without even being conscious of it. Same Love can relate to many people, especially those part of the LGBT community, or anybody who feels as though they don’t fit in and are in need of reassurance.
A prominent and very broad theme I recognised through the lyrics was identity, and accepting who you truly are. At the beginning of the song, Macklemore mentions how some people believe that being gay is a choice, as he says “The right-wing conservatives think it's a decision, and you can be cured with some treatment and religion. Man-made rewiring of a pre-disposition.” This is explaining how some religious conservatives hold the view that homosexuality is a decision, and some even believe that homosexuality is a disease with specific treatment options. This part of the song saddens me, much like the rest, as not only do gay people have to go through the struggle of accepting themselves, but after they accept themselves people doubt that it is truly who they are, and even blame it on a disease. Towards the end of the song, we can see progress has been made with identity and acceptance, as the chorus says “I can’t change, even if I tried. Even if I wanted to.” The chorus is sung by Mary Lambert, but she embodies the voice of the gay community as a whole, and isn’t just speaking for herself. This quote from the song proves that being different is okay, and that no matter how hard you try, you can’t change who you truly are. I believe this is a very important message, as it encourages listeners of the songs to embrace their identity, even if they will be judged and categorised based on it. The theme of identity in Same Love touches on struggling to fit into our judgmental and discriminating society, which can not only relate to homosexuals in our generation but to anyone having a hard time fitting in. Macklemore encourages embracing your differences and accepting who you are, as he says “It's human rights for everybody, there is no difference… Live on and be yourself.” Macklemore proves a point about just how hard it is for us to accept ourselves and our own identity when others aren’t accepting of it either, as he puts himself in a gay person's shoes: “If I was gay, I would think hip-hop hates me. Have you read the Youtube comments lately?” This quote made me think about how social media may affect anybody struggling with their identity, and just how hateful some people are online.
Another theme introduced through the song is equality, as Macklemore makes an attempt to remind listeners that everybody is equal, despite your sexual orientation, race, religion, or beliefs. Same Love addresses many flaws in our society, one of the main ones being that gay people are considered less worthy than straight people and that they are looked down on, as “gay is synonymous with the lesser,” which is the perfect example of equality. While Macklemore is addressing this flaw in our society, he is making sure listeners know that gay people aren’t less worthy than straight people. Sadly enough, It is understandable that gay people consider themselves to have less self worth than others, since in many countries their love isn’t even legal. Although in New Zealand gay marriage is legal, is it still a fight for equality in many other places across the globe, including Australia, a country we would consider very similar to ours. Although seemingly similar, gay marriage is still illegal in Australia, and there has been a recent yes/no poll for the public surrounding the legality of it, which highlights that overall we may not be as forward and as progressed in this issue as we think. It saddens me that gay marriage and equality is still an issue in our society, and that gay people still have a reason to be afraid. In America, where the song Same Love originated, Donald Trump has recently been voted into power. This is a scary time for homosexuals in America as well as others who do not fit his frame of thought, as Donald Trump isn’t accepting of people's differences and his idea of equality is different to what Macklemore is trying to enforce in Same Love. Although America is struggling and Australia is still fighting, things have been looking up for the gay community and for equality in New Zealand, as Jacinda Ardern was elected as prime minister. The previous prime minister of New Zealand, Bill English, was open about not supporting gay marriage among other things, however Jacinda is all for equality. The second verse in Same Love ends with a powerful line, “I might not be the same, but that's not important. No freedom 'til we're equal, damn right I support it.”
Same Love touches briefly on gay stereotypes, and how some people's own sexuality is questioned based on typical stereotypes they may fall into. Macklemore explains in the lyrics, “when I was in the third grade, I thought that I was gay. Cause I could draw, my uncle was, and I kept my room straight… a bunch of stereotypes all in my head. I remember doing the math like, yeah, I'm good at little league. A preconceived idea of what it all meant.” Meaning when Macklemore was a child, he thought that he was homosexual because he excelled at artistic things, which are considered to be more feminine than traditional masculine activities like sports, according to many stereotypes. Macklemore telling the listeners of what lead him to believe he was gay when he wasn’t is also proving stereotypes are often wrong, and shows how faulty his logic truly was. These are the kinds of stereotypes that can make some people who may be apart of the gay community feel like outsiders. These people must be struggling to feel as though they fit in at all, if they don’t fit the typical stereotype of ‘gay people’ and don’t fit in with straight people either. In our society, many stereotypes are plastered onto gay people, yet they are often incorrect and completely inaccurate. It is generally believed that all gay men love to shop, are stylish and flamboyant, and more feminine than masculine. For lesbian women it is expected that they are more masculine than feminine, have short hair, and wear baggy clothes. Although there are some people that do carry these qualities, not all do. Although only spoken of briefly, Same Love still addresses that stereotypes can be a severe and often forgotten issue in our society that is commonly pushed aside.
To conclude, Same Love is a meaningful song with powerful lyrics, and is rich in themes and moral challenges, that Macklemore and Ryan Lewis have made not only very relatable to the listeners and to today’s society, but also to the LGBT community. The lyrics have made me realise just how judgmental and unaccepting our society really is, and how hard it must be for homosexuals in our generation. Same Love also goes on to prove that you can’t change who you truly are, and that you should embrace it rather than being ashamed, despite what people may say or think about you. Macklemore has portrayed the eminent theme of stereotypes and very prominently through the lyrics, and made me personally realise just how quick I am to categorise and judge others based on these stereotypes. These morals shown through the song helped me to learn and understand the true meanings of them, and their importance in my life and others.