Light It Up

Album: What Makes You Country (2017)
Charted: 57
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Written by Bryan and Brad Tursi of Old Dominion, "Light It Up" is a heartbreaking love song for the digital age. The track finds Bryan phone in hand anxiously waiting to hear from the lady he's just texted. However, the pair have recently had a fight and she's not replying.

    I wake up, I check it
    I shower and I check it
    I feel the buzz in my truck
    And I almost wreck it


    Bryan's phone is pretty much glued to his hand as he waits to hear for a message that seems to be never coming.
  • Although Luke Bryan is happily married, he recognizes that people looking for love in the digital age will relate to the song's message of waiting for that text.

    "'Light It Up' is kind of glimpse into how people communicate these days. People are breaking up with text messages, they're getting back with text messages - they're just on their phones so much," he told iHeartRadio. "It's about a guy that's hanging on everything that's happening on his phone, like 'Please just like that screen up with your text message.'"
  • It was Brad Tursi who suggested the use of the word "neurotic" to drive home how preoccupied the subject of the song has become with his phone.

    I get so neurotic about it baby
    'Cause I know you're reading your phone
    I can't help from going crazy
    Thinking you might not be all alone.


    "Brad had the front part of the chorus," Bryan recalled. "He was like, 'I get so neurotic about…,' and I was like, 'Neurotic? That's different. You've certainly never heard that word in a country song.'"

    Bryan became more comfortable with the word as the songwriting session progressed.
  • When Luke Bryan got together to write with Brad Tursi, the Old Dominion member already had the beginnings of the song.

    "Brad comes out to my house," Bryan recalled, "and we kinda get to know each other a little better around the coffee pot, and then we go into my songwriting room and start working."

    "He tells me kind of this chorus thing, and I remember he had the melody thing like (sings) 'blew you up in the middle of the night again,'" the singer added. "I kinda liked that, and we just started rockin' and wrote a song!"
  • The music video was shot in Nashville in September 2017 and was directed by frequent Bryan collaborator Michael Monaco. The clip follows NBA player Jimmy Butler waiting for a message from a girl that he likes. Minnesota Timberwolves' Jimmy Butler is a country music fan and has been a guest of Bryan's at several of his concerts.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real Group

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real GroupSong Writing

The leader of the Modern A Cappella movement talks about the genre.

Glen Ballard

Glen BallardSongwriter Interviews

Glen Ballard talks about co-writing and producing Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill album, and his work with Dave Matthews, Aerosmith and Annie Lennox.

Graham Parker

Graham ParkerSongwriter Interviews

When Judd Apatow needed under-appreciated rockers for his Knocked Up sequel, he immediately thought of Parker, who just happened to be getting his band The Rumour back together.

Which Songs are About Drugs?

Which Songs are About Drugs?Fact or Fiction

"25 or 6 to 4" to "Semi-Charmed Life" - see if you can spot the songs that are really about drugs.

David Bowie Lyrics Quiz

David Bowie Lyrics QuizMusic Quiz

How well do you know your David Bowie lyrics? Take this quiz to find out.

Does Jimmy Page Worship The Devil? A Look at Satanism in Rock

Does Jimmy Page Worship The Devil? A Look at Satanism in RockSong Writing

We ring the Hell's Bells to see what songs and rockers are sincere in their Satanism, and how much of it is an act.