What Happens After You?
"What Happens After You?" | |||||
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Album track by Weezer | |||||
Album | SZNZ: Autumn | ||||
Released | September 22, 2022 | ||||
Recorded | April-August 2022 | ||||
Length | 3:19 | ||||
Label | Crush Music/Atlantic Records | ||||
Writer(s) | Anthony De La Torre, Desmond Child, Eric Bazilian, Rivers Cuomo, Rob Wells | ||||
Producer(s) | Tyler Cole, Suzy Shinn | ||||
Status | Released | ||||
Live debut | September 19, 2022 in West Hollywood, CA | ||||
Last played | November 26, 2022 in Jakarta, Indonesia | ||||
Stream | Error creating thumbnail: Unable to save thumbnail to destination Spotify | ||||
SZNZ: Autumn track listing | |||||
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"What Happens After You?" is the third track from SZNZ: Autumn. Though the EP has no official single, "What Happens After You?" serves as its de facto "single" for the purposes of promotion.
Appearances
- SZNZ: Autumn (2022)
Overview
"What Happens After You?" was originally written in 2015 at a songwriting camp run by songwriter Desmond Child for musician Anthony De La Torre.[1] Child co-wrote the song with De La Torre, Eric Bazilian, and Rob Wells. Wells, in 2022, cited the song "My Songs Know What You Did in the Dark (Light Em Up)" by Fall Out Boy and "Love Me Again" by John Newman as an influence.[1] A demo, with De La Torre on vocals, was recorded and produced, but the song went ultimately unused. Years later, "What Happens After You" was among songs sent by Child to Rivers Cuomo for consideration on a future project. Cuomo loved the chorus, but ended up writing his own verses and pre-choruses.
The track was first revealed to fans on September 25, 2021 via Cuomo's personal website.[2] The song is the de facto "single" for SZNZ: Autumn.[3] On April 21, 2022, a short clip of the song was heard on Cuomo's TikTok account.[4] On September 16, a short snippet of the song was given as the reward for solving that day's puzzle on Cuomo's web game, Weezle.
"What Happens After You?" was debuted live at a secret show (under the Goat Punishment moniker) in West Hollywood on September 19, 2022, ahead of the song's debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on the 21st.
An official music video featuring Rivers Cuomo in his home studio was released by Weezer on November 29.
A demo of "What Happens After You?" was leaked online in December of 2022.
Personnel
- Rivers Cuomo — lead vocals, guitar
- Brian Bell — rhythm guitar
- Scott Shriner — bass
- Patrick Wilson — drums
Live performances
Video
Music video
The official music video for "What Happens After You?" was released on November 29, 2022 and features Cuomo in his home studio.
Lyric video
The lyric video for "What Happens After You" was released on October 17, 2022, and features the lyrics imposed over a billboard using the Comic Sans typeface. This was in reference to a billboard in Murray, Utah purchased by Cory Winn, of the YouTube channel Lucca International, that featured only the text "WEEZER" rendered in Comic Sans.[5] Weezer purchased their own billboard down the road that read "Thanks to whoever bought the billboard down the road. –Weezer".[6]
Lyrics
I'm sending out a signal
Waiting on a callback from you
Did I hear an echo
Or am I living in déjà vu?
Corrosion in the wires
Makes it hard for me to understand
Part of me is curious
Part of me is too afraid to ask
You are the only one I ever really loved
What happens after you?
What happens after you?
We zoom into the future
And there's no way to turn back the clock
I've been depending on you
And now I'm all alone on this rock
Life is unfamiliar
Everything is written down in code
All I have is a memory
All I have is a memory (of a memory)
You are the only one I ever really loved
What happens after you?
What happens after you?
Will I go crazy, sadistic
Swingin' 'round a big stick?
Will I grow kinder when I see how fragile life is?
My mind spins
What happens after
What happens after you?
What happens after you?
You are the only one I ever really loved
What happens after you?
What happens after you?
Will I go crazy, sadistic
Swingin' 'round a big stick?
Will I grow kinder when I see how fragile life is?
My mind spins
What happens after
What happens after you?
What happens after you, you, you?
You are the only one I ever really loved
What happens after you?
What happens after you?
Will I go crazy, sadistic
Swingin' 'round a big stick?
Will I grow kinder when I see how fragile life is?
My mind spins
What happens after
What happens after you?
Known recordings
Performer(s) | Title | Filename | Date of recording | Recording location | Length | Appeared on | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rivers Cuomo | memory_2018_3_21_17_2_18.mp3 | March 21, 2018 | 0:36 | Alone XIII: The Pacific Daydream Black Years | "All I have is a memory" verse sketch | ||
Rivers Cuomo | What Happens After You? | What Happens After You 2021-06-09 15.12-2.mp3 | June 9, 2021 | 3:25 | Leaked online | ||
Weezer | What Happens After You? | 2022 |
|
3:19 | SZNZ: Autumn |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Rob Wells. "HOW I GOT A SONG ON A WEEZER ALBUM!!! ROB WELLS MUSIC TALK episode 14" YouTube. 20 October 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z2VbqjGdn88
- ↑ Cuomo, Rivers. (September 25, 2021). Riverpedia. Archive of the original entry, Riverpedia archive - 09/25/2021.
- ↑ Cuomo, Rivers "weezer: SZNZ" Google Docs. https://web.archive.org/web/20220422001024/https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BGWLEmZohpOPaLBPe132FMrHvSgyw8PHt8k93AmZ0kQ/edit Archived 21 April 2022, from the original: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BGWLEmZohpOPaLBPe132FMrHvSgyw8PHt8k93AmZ0kQ/edit
- ↑ Cuomo, Rivers. (April 21, 2022). Retrieved from https://www.tiktok.com/@rivers_cuomo/video/7089187934624140586.
- ↑ Martinez, A. "Utah man rents a billboard to draw attention to the name of a famous rock band" NPR. 18 October 2022. https://www.npr.org/2022/10/18/1129615642/utah-man-rents-a-billboard-to-draw-attention-to-the-name-of-a-famous-rock-band
- ↑ Lucca International. "Weezer Responded To My Billboard With A Billboard Of Their Own" YouTube. 15 October 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnkLPCPiaiY