“Meant to Be” by City and Colour

At the heart of “Meant to Be”, what we are met with is a narrator who is going through sort of an existential crisis, or perhaps we can say a test of faith. Most simply explained this is a song of bereavement.

In real life, it is based on Dallas Green losing a close associate and regular collaborator named Karl Bareham prematurely, as in said individual reportedly dying from a scuba accident at the age of 37. At the time, Karl was touring Australia with City and Colour, and the whole ordeal was such that it profoundly affected Green, with one of his responses being to pen this tune.

So as inevitably happens when someone passes away before reaching old age, there were those who led Dallas to believe that the death of his loved one was “meant to be”. And that would apparently include the religious system he was brought up in, i.e. Christianity. 

But his personal history is such that he never really clung to mainstream religious doctrine to begin with. And now with the passing of his friend, that disposition is has become more pronounced. This is because Green is finding it hard to believe that Karl’s death and his own resultant deep suffering were actually “meant to be”.

So more holistically put, it can be taken that the vocalist’s faith/belief in God has been shaken by this real-life nightmare. That is a sentiment we come across semi-regularly in song and otherwise, i.e. a person having issues with the omnipotent Creator of the universe as a result of the untimely demise of a loved one. But in this particular song, the lyrics never go there directly.

City and Colour

City and Colour is actually the moniker used by one musician, Canadian singer Dallas Green. He has been active since the turn of the century. He is concurrently a member of another successful act, a band known as Alexisonfire.

Under the City and Colour brand, Green has released six studio full-lengths between 2005 and 2019. Three of these albums topped the Canadian Albums Charts. 

Release of “Meant to Be”

“Meant to Be” came out on 18 November 2022. It was apparently released as a standalone single.

Credits

Dallas Green is credited with writing “Meant to Be”. He is actually credited as the song’s only writer. In addition to composing this song, he also co-produced it with one Matt Kelly.

Thoughts and Emotions from Fans

“Meant to Be” is an incredibly powerful song that has made fans look back on their experiences of grief.

Fans who have lost their loved ones recently shared that they were not able to grieve their loss fully until they heard “Meant to Be”. This track has brought them to tears and given them the closure they’ve needed.

Another fan also wrote that this track has got her questioning things she once trusted as she looks back on her time of grief.