‘Genesis’ by Morgan Wallen - Lyrics and Meaning

‘Genesis’ kicks off a Biblically-themed double-header on Morgan Wallen's fourth studio album, I'm the Problem, with the Sneedville native following this up with ‘Revelation’.

The former is considerably more uptempo, with Wallen weaving a few strands from the famous Genesis creation story about Adam and Eve into a thesis on his damaging temptations.

‘Genesis’ is the most indie-leaning track on I'm the Problem, with Morgan Wallen once again showcasing his ability to flit between genres with ease. Wallen channels his inner indie-rocker, with the ‘Last Night’ chart-topper crooning wistfully across the energising, electric-guitar fuelled instrumental. It brings to mind ‘Last Drive Down Main’ from One Thing At A Time, but with a more playful tone.

“There was a day Jack and Jim didn't know me from Adam

And Eve wasn't some what's her name in my bed

It's like outta the dark I saw the neon a-flashin'

Heard the snake on my shoulder give me the go ahead”

The opening line feels like a nod to another stand-out from I'm the Problem, ‘Jack and Jill’, with this also serving as a reference to two of Wallen's favourite drinks - Jack Daniels and Jim Beam. He brings in Adam and Eve, framing the latter as one of the women he's been sleeping with, before describing his destructive inclinations as being the result of the snake - or rather, the Devil - on his shoulder.

“So I had my first sip

And I didn't stop there

I swear

From the time I wake up to the time I lay down

It's the devil's playground everywhere that I look

Swear it's there in my blood, I was born to be lost

Lotta lines that I cross little more than I should

I'm losin' me to pretty eyes and the proof

He knew what I'd battle, he knew what would tempt me

He threw out the apple, said let there be women and let there be whiskey”

Morgan Wallen reflects on the first time he tasted alcohol, harking back to the vignette in ‘This Bar’ when Wallen recalls getting too drunk too fast when he turned 21.

Wallen outlines that the Devil didn't have to work hard to find out what would tempt him to stray outside of the lines, with the ‘Smile’ crooner citing women and whiskey as his two main weaknesses. He again flips a key element of Genesis, when Eve gives in to temptation and takes a bite from the apple, with Wallen remarking that the Devil threw away the apple, as he knew he wouldn't need it to tempt him.

“Wish I could take all these troubles and put 'em back in the bottle

Wish I could take all them girls and un-take 'em home

Swear it's all in the past until I do it tomorrow

When am I gonna learn, I guess I prolly won't

I can't leave ‘em alone”

As is the case with ‘Born with a Beer in My Hand’, Morgan Wallen describes his love of alcohol as being something that runs in his blood, with the country titan wishing here that he could go back and do things a little differently. He hints at the maturity that he shows later on I'm the Problem, but then suggests he ‘probably’ won't ever learn.

“I do good for a second then I can't help myself (mmm)

Makes it look like Heaven ‘til I end up in Hell”

Wallen concludes by dropping another piece of Biblical imagery, lamenting how the Devil gives his temptations an allure and lustre that makes them seem like ‘Heaven’, but they turn into ‘Hell’, due to him being left with painful hangovers and heartbreak.

As is often the case of late, the ‘Thought You Should Know’ singer-songwriter has so far remained tight-lipped on how the song came about.

However, when revealing the release date for I'm the Problem, Wallen provided fans with an insight into the theme of introspection that courses through the project as a whole.

“I have been a problem, for sure, and I've got no problem admitting that. But there are other sides to me as well," he explained. "I've spent the last 11 months really trying to figure out, 'Do I still want to be the problem? Is it time to move past that phase in my life? I think it probably is, and this might be the last time I get a chance to honestly say it.”

“There was a day Jack and Jim didn't know me from Adam

And Eve wasn't some what's her name in my bed

It's like outta the dark I saw the neon a-flashin'

Heard the snake on my shoulder give me the go ahead

-

So I had my first sip

And I didn't stop there

I swear

-

From the time I wake up to the time I lay down

It's the devil's playground everywhere that I look

Swear it's there in my blood, I was born to be lost

Lotta lines that I cross little more than I should

I'm losin' me to pretty eyes and the proof

He knew what I'd battle, he knew what would tempt me

He threw out the apple, said let there be women and let there be whiskey

-

Wish I could take all these troubles and put 'em back in the bottle

Wish I could take all them girls and un-take 'em home

Swear it's all in the past until I do it tomorrow

When am I gonna learn, I guess I prolly won't

I can't leave ‘em alone

-

From the time I wake up to the time I lay down

It's the devil's playground everywhere that I look

Swear it's there in my blood, I was born to be lost

Lotta lines that I cross little more than I should

I'm losin' me to pretty eyes and the proof

He knew what I'd battle, he knew what would tempt me

He threw out the apple, said let there be women and let there be whiskey

-

I do good for a second then I can't help myself (mmm)

Makes it look like Heaven ‘til I end up in Hell

-

Hell from the time I wake up to the time I lay down

It's the devil's playground everywhere that I look

Swear it's there in my blood, I was born to be lost

Lotta lines that I cross little more than I should

I'm losin' me to pretty eyes and the proof

He knew what I'd battle, he knew what would tempt me

He threw out the apple, said let there be women and let there be whiskey”

--

For more on Morgan Wallen, see below: