“Lily” by Alan Walker, Emelie Hollow & K-391

Many people recognize fairytales as having come from Scandinavia , i.e. via authors such as Hans Christian Andersen (1805-1875). And maybe it is because of such that the three primary artists of this song, who are also from that region (Norway to be exact), decided to capitalize on such a theme on the song “Lily”. 

In other words, thematically “Lily” reads a lot like an old-school fairytale. And just like any fairytale worth its salt, it features a universal lesson which transcends that time period in which it was written.

The Story

“Lily” is – or “was” – “a little girl”.  She grew up in a sheltered environment, i.e. “within her castle walls”. However, she was bored of such an existence and/or curious of the outside world. 

So occasionally she tried to run away. And then one evening she did in fact succeed at this goal. She made her way into the woods, i.e. the unknown, “so afraid” and “all alone”.

Indeed she had been warned not to venture out into the woods. For those in the know advised her that there are “creatures who are hiding in the dark”. And verily once she did make such a move, “something came creeping” up on her. 

However, said entity did not present itself as a threat. Rather it assured Lily that to the contrary, everything was all good.

In fact this being, whatever it is, offers to protect her. In exchange, what she has to do is basically trust and follow him wholeheartedly. So in other words, said entity seduced her. 

This is something she becomes blatantly aware of by the time the second verse comes around, where something transpires which frees her from being under his spell.

So conclusively the story ends with Lily running from said being – fleeing for her very life, in search of anyone who will help her. It is never specified what type of fate she eventually meets. 

Did Lily die?

But considering that once again she is referred to in the past tense on the very-first line of the song, the implication may be that she died out there somewhere in the woods. It’s even likely she met her demise through the hands of that selfsame entity. 

Or if you want to look at the song more euphemistically, perhaps like a traditional fairytale it is set in the past, thus explaining why the titular character is referred to in the past tense.

Lyrics are Metaphorical?

But that being said, considering that this is in fact a 21^st century song/fairytale, the lyrics are by and large deemed to be a metaphor. As such Lily is commonly understood to be any girl or naïve young woman. 

And perhaps, like many girls, she interprets the rules governing her life as being too oppressive. Yet and still said rules exist for a reason. For verily there are people out there, coming from all types of directions, to take advantage of females. And said individuals tend to present themselves as wolves in sheep’s clothing, never revealing the true evil in their hearts forthrightly until it is too late.

And that is what happened to Lily. She got fooled into believing things were sweet when in fact they weren’t. 

But at the same time, in the name of empathizing with the fairer sex, perhaps we can also say that her people should have done a better job of educating her about the world as opposed to simply locking her down and telling her “don’t go there”.

When was “Lily” released?

This song is from Alan Walker’s maiden album, “Different World”. Said undertaking came out on 14 December 2018, being a product of MER Musikk and Sony Music. 

Despite being one of the most popular tracks on “Different World”, Alan Walker didn’t release “Lily” as a single.

In all, 7 singles were released in support of the project. They include these:

• “Alone”
• “Faded”
• “Diamond Heart”

More Facts about “Lily”

In addition to Emelie Hollow and K-391 who, like Alan Walker, are both from Norway, the project also features the American musicians:

• Steve Aoki
• Noah Cyrus
• Digital Farm Animals

This track originated as an instrumental named “Flux” (2018) that was written and produced exclusively by K-391. Said instrumental was embellished by Alan Walker, Big Fred, Marcus Arnbekk and Lars Kristian Rosness, who are also credited as producers of “Lily”. Moreover Emelie Hollow’s vocals were added onto the track.

K-391, Alan Walker, Emelie Hollow, Marcus Arnbekk and Lars Kristian Rosness are also formally recognized as writers of this song alongside the following:

• Didrik Handlykken
• Magnus Bertelsen
• Gunnar G. Pettersen
• Oda Loves You

Alan Walker

Alan Walker is actually a DJ and producer who was born in England but musically is associated with Norway, possessing citizenship in both countries. 

He began making music professionally in 2012 and scored quite a few number ones in Norway with tracks like the following:

• “Sing Me to Sleep” (2016)
• “Alone” (2016)
• “All Falls Down” (2017)

The latter alongside the aforementioned Digital Farm Animals and Noah Cyrus. 

Another Norwegian number one, 2015’s “Faded”, would also be his most-successful song internationally as of 2020, having been certified triple-platinum in the US and double-platinum in the UK. 

And he has also won quite a few awards during the latter half of the 2010s, including being named Best Norwegian Act at the MTV EMAs three times (2016, 2017 and 2018).  Additionally Walker opened for Rihanna during the German stop of her 2016 Anti World Tour and for Justin Bieber when he visited India as part of his Purpose World Tour in 2017.