Special

Special
Special.jpeg
Written by Joe Hawley
Appears on n/a
Sung by Joe Hawley, Isaac Castor, Marcy Nabors
Duration 3:21
Genre Hip-Hop/Rap
Language English

Special is a song by Joe Hawley, featuring Isaac Castor and Marcy Nabors.[1][2]

It was uploaded to YouTube on December 23, 2017[3], and uploaded to iTunes, Apple Music, and Spotify a day later.[4][5]


History

Special was originally written as a demo for The CW teen drama series "Riverdale".[6] [7]

On November 9th, 2023, Special was taken off of streaming services, most likely due to Joe having to delete his DistroKid profile, after repeatedly having people fraudulently upload tracks to his profile under his name.[8]

Song Meanings

Some([Who?]) have theorized the track is about Tally Hall in someway.[citation needed]

Trivia

  • The original copyrights for this song listed the record label as: "729374 Records DK", which means it was most likely distributed via online distribution service DistroKid; it has since changed to the moniker "585-J-HAWLEY".
  • Marcy Nabors is credited simply as "Nabors" for unknown reasons. As of 2021, they have no other songs on Spotify under that name.[9]
  • Nabors appeared on and organized the fan project We Think We're Playing In A Band.[10]


Lyrics

JH: Generally I'm a modest guy
I've eaten my share of humble pie
Sometimes that's delicious, but I do have wishes
To swim with the biggest of bigger fishes

What would be the point if we were all the same
Life would be an abject hackneyed game
No frame of reference for pleasure when there's no pain
I'd rather not refrain 
I'd rather not abstain

Do you believe I'm special
Would you agree I'm special
How could I be so special
Do I believe I'm special

I'm not afraid to be cast aside
Invisible guys don't need to hide
The struggle is real 
but what's the deal
When people feel like they need to have the most appeal

I remember practicing most weekends
At the expense of spending joyful time with friends
Imagining that it would yield the best rewards
Not for repeating hip-hop doo-wop chords

Do you believe I'm special
Would you agree I'm special
How could I be so special
Do I believe I'm special

IC: Mom always told me I was a one-of-a-kind
but now that I'm old and wise, that thought
it never be runnin' my mind

What makes me different than all of the other dreamers
I can't impress 'em with bars when I meet up with the reaper
I said ignorance is blissful
World is abysmal, so every time I rap
I gotta snap like a wish bone

What the future holds
Let me look into my crystal ball
I ain't got no friends left 'cause I ticked 'em off

I ain't slept in days
I'm getting more Fs than As
When this record plays
evident I'm in a mental haze
staring at the Yellow Moon while Aaron Neville sings
Heard the devil say that I'd never be special

Wait

I control my destiny
piecing up what is left of me
Confidence and common sense'll be the recipe

This industry, it be faker than pro wrestling
'Makes me wonder if this talent
really is a specialty

JH: Anyway who am I to fret like this 
Maybe a key change can pull me out of this abyss

Sooner or later I shall find myself
And make amends with the me left on the shelf
In a dance, an epic vast expanse of kids
A round-robin championship of ids

Maybe I'm unique and maybe not
But I might as well deliver all I've got

Do you believe I'm special
Would you agree I'm special
How could I be so special
Do I believe I'm special

ALL: Do you believe we're special
Would you agree we're special
How could we be so special
Do we believe we're special

Do you believe we're special
Would you agree we're special
How could we be so special
Do we believe we're special

Tabs/Chords

Nothing here, yet!

References

  1. https://shadolith.tumblr.com/post/168908272435/special-joe-hawley-ft-isaac-castor-nabors Marcy Nabors on Tumblr
  2. https://twitter.com/Shadolith/status/945090081865465856 Marcy Nabors on Twitter. (Accessed December 4th 2023).
  3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxg0_-j5z58 Joe Hawley - Special. YouTube. Video.
  4. Special - iTunes
  5. Special -Spotify
  6. Joe and Ross on Jimmy Jam Radio, 02/21/2018. YouTube.
  7. https://twitter.com/wHaleJoey/status/1693566818957300176 Joe Hawley's Quiz Tweet about the origin of "Special". Twitter. dead link
  8. https://www.facebook.com/joehawleyjoehawley/posts/pfbid08trci4JUeiAyrGZYNvpkAPhdQ3HuQgTTmZYQc4g8MNBKh6txkSpL2z9NVwtaNrYCl "To anyone concerned: I had to cancel DistroKid because the account was too hackable; a more professional "label" may be in the cards at some juncture. Thank you all". Joe Hawley. Facebook. December 4th 2023. (Accessed December 4th 2023.)
  9. https://open.spotify.com/artist/1llECaggdN1BktMR7WysAF?si=m--4So3-RjW00QgRwSiWXQ Nabors Spotify page
  10. https://wethinkwereplayinginaband.bandcamp.com/track/the-trap Marcy Nabors - The Trap Bandcamp.