sombr – would’ve been you. Lyrics & Meaning
sombr – would’ve been you : The Heartbreak of Being Unsavable
Ever look back on a relationship and think, ‘They were the one. If only…’? That one person you put on such a high pedestal, believing they held the magic key to fix all your broken parts? It’s a heavy, almost universal feeling, a mix of nostalgia, regret, and a whole lot of ‘what ifs’ that can keep you up at night.
It’s a powerful and often painful emotion to carry. Well, there’s a song that captures this exact ache with haunting perfection, wrapping it in a beautifully minimalist sound that lets the raw emotion shine through. This track serves as a perfect sonic photograph of that very feeling. Let’s pull back the curtain on this beautifully heartbreaking track and figure out what it’s really telling us about love, loss, and the limits of salvation.
Cracking the of sombr’s “would’ve been you”
- sombr – would’ve been you : The Heartbreak of Being Unsavable
- sombr – undressed : The Heartbreaking Exhaustion of Starting Over
- sombr – i wish i knew how to quit you : An Ode to a Love You Can’t Escape
- sombr – 12 to 12 : A 24/7 Heartbreak
- sombr – back to friends : The Awkward Point of No Return
Right off the bat, sombr hits you with the central theme of the song. There’s no buildup, no gentle introduction. It’s an immediate confession, a raw admission of faith placed in another person. It’s almost like a prayer to a past love.
If anyone could’ve saved me
It would’ve been you
It would’ve been you
It would’ve been you
The repetition here isn’t just for melody; it’s an obsession. It’s the sound of a thought looping in someone’s mind, a mantra of regret. The speaker isn’t just saying this person was great; they’re saying this person was their only hope. This person had the potential not just to love them, but to fundamentally save and change them. That’s an immense amount of pressure to put on someone, and it’s a weight that sets the stage for the song’s ultimate heartbreak.
The Weight of Unspoken Apologies
Then, the song takes a sharp turn inward. After establishing this idealized image of the other person, the speaker reveals their own role in the downfall. It’s a moment of vulnerability that’s both painful and deeply relatable.
Would you forgive me for everything I haven’t apologized for
Apologized
I killed a part of who I was to keep you on my side
On my side
Wow. This part is a gut punch. It’s about the silent sacrifices we make in relationships, sometimes twisting ourselves into unrecognizable shapes just to keep someone close. He admits to “killing” a part of himself, a self-betrayal done in the name of love. The plea for forgiveness isn’t for something he did, but for everything he didn’t say or do. It’s the weight of unexpressed guilt, a quiet acknowledgment that he wasn’t being his true self, which likely contributed to the relationship’s end.
The Painful Truth: A Moment of Clarity
Just when you think this is a song solely about pining for a lost savior, sombr delivers the core message, the story’s powerful moral. It’s a stark realization that is offered almost as a piece of advice to the very person he misses.
Hold your tears
For another day
You can’t save someone
Who can’t be saved
And there it is. The climax of the song’s emotional journey. It’s a moment of profound, albeit sad, maturity. The speaker is essentially releasing their former partner from the impossible task of saving them. He’s telling them, “Don’t cry for me, because this wasn’t your fault. The problem was with me.” It’s the devastating understanding that no matter how perfect, loving, or patient someone is, they cannot fix a person who isn’t ready or able to fix themselves. This is the song’s true, heartbreaking genius: it’s not just about a breakup, it’s about personal accountability.
Oh, Virginia: A Final, Personal Plea
The song closes with a slight but significant change in wording and the introduction of a name, which makes the whole story feel intensely personal and real.
It should’ve been you
Oh, Virginia
The shift from “would’ve been” and “could’ve been” to “should’ve been” is everything. “Would’ve” and “could’ve” are about potential, but “should’ve” is about destiny and justice. It implies a sense of cosmic unfairness—that in a better world, they would have been the one. And who is Virginia? Is it a literal name? A pet name? A metaphor for a place of innocence or a time of happiness? We don’t know, and that mystery makes the song even more poignant. It feels like we’re eavesdropping on a private, whispered goodbye.
Ultimately, “would’ve been you” is a song about the painful acceptance that some people enter our lives as guides, not saviors. It teaches that the most profound love can’t rescue you from yourself. The real journey of being “saved” is an internal one. It’s a reminder to release others from the god-like expectation of fixing us and to instead take on that responsibility ourselves. It’s a lesson in letting go, not just of a person, but of the idea that someone else holds the key to our own wholeness.
But that’s just my take on it. This song is so beautifully sparse that it leaves a lot of room for personal interpretation. What does it mean to you? Who do you think Virginia is? Let’s chat about it in the comments below!
