'O.D.' by Waylon Wyatt – Lyrics & Meaning

With viral releases like 'Arkansas Diamond' and 'Everything Under The Sun,' seventeen-year-old Waylon Wyatt has been steadily rising through the ranks of country music stardom. With a well-honed rasp and an easy song-telling in tow, the young artist has secured a name for himself among the fleet of this year's newcomers.

His debut EP, 'Til The Sun Goes Down, was unveiled this past July, revealing with it several more country-folk gems. By mid-November, he shared a deluxe version of the EP, the 7-track collection expanded by one long-awaited offering: 'O.D.'

The song, regaling listeners with tales of an all-consuming kind of love, has been teased across Wyatt's social media for some time. However, now that it has finally arrived, it falls a little flat.

Sonically, 'O.D.' is fine. The tune is all acoustics, carried on scratchy strums and shuddering steel.

It's an acceptable composition, suitable for the story he's telling; but overall, the sound is a little unexciting and lackluster from an artist who has been widely celebrated lately.

Tens of millions of streams is certainly nothing to scoff at; 'O.D.' just sounds commonplace in his catalog.

"I don't drink
Never been drunk at all
But your love runs through me like alcohol
I don't smoke
I ain't ever been stoned neither
But you get me higher than a daggum fever"

In 'O.D.', Waylon Wyatt sings of an intoxicating kind of romance. He admits to never having partaken in certain mind-altering substances, but he's in a relationship that, at the moment, gets him higher than any drink or drug.

It's a sentiment that's been used in music time again. Take Roxy Music's 'Love Is The Drug' or Kenny Roger's 'Love Is A Drug.' The idea of love being this all-consuming and addictive thing is nothing new, 'O.D.' just goes about making that point in a careless way.

At the heart of this song, Wyatt is simply hooked on this person and this budding relationship, jonesing to be around this significant other and craving their love all the time.

That's all well and good. However, the chorus paints a glaringly gauche portrait of addiction as the artist sings:

"If your love was a drug
I wouldn't get enough
I'd be cracked-out, bad-mouthed, lacking teeth
A crashed out, blacked out, lacking sleep
A hard sight to see
Living out on these streets
Being a wreck a wretch begging for cash
So I could buy some more of that."

In crassly comparing this relationship to addiction and likening himself to an addict, he belittles an epidemic that plagues much of America, whittling those under the thumb of addiction down to being "cracked-out, bad-mouthed, lacking teeth" or "Living out on these streets / Being a wreck, a wretch, begging for cash."

While widely caricatured in the song, this is a reality for some struggling with addiction as is overdosing, something he also makes light of as the song's chorus comes to a close.

"If your love was a drug, I'd be guaranteed to OD"

Overall, the tune is a fairly demeaning and tone deaf way to go about chronicling young love.

I don't drink
Never been drunk at all
But your love runs through me like alcohol
I don't smoke
I ain't ever been stoned neither
But you get me higher than a daggum fever

Soothe my soul in all the wrong ways you can
Falling out since you called me your man
I'm hooked on you and I don't know how
Don't sit there and act so innocent now

If your love was a drug
I wouldn't get enough
I'd be cracked-out, bad-mouthed, lacking teeth
A crashed out, blacked out, lacking sleep
A hard sight to see
Living out on these streets
Being a wreck a wretch begging for cash
So I could buy some more of that
Good stuff your love
Gets me weak, with just your touch
I wouldn't get clean, better yet
I don't think I'd even try one taste of those lips
And I'm done for life
If your love was a drug, I'd be guaranteed to OD

See my eyes
Made 'em blush blood shot red
Cause I ain't got no sleep laying in my bed
And I might, might be a fiend of all these feelings
You've given to me
I'm the maddest, addict ever know
You can never trust me alone
Without a smoke or swig of you
Make it through, lord only knows what I'd do

If your love was a drug
I wouldn't get enough
I'd be cracked-out, bad-mouthed, lacking teeth
A crashed out, blacked out, lacking sleep
A hard sight to see
Living out on these streets
Being a wreck a wretch begging for cash
So I could buy some more of that
Good stuff your love
Gets me weak, with just your touch
I wouldn't get clean, better yet
I don't think I'd even try one taste of those lips
And I'm done for life
If your love was a drug, I'd be guaranteed to OD

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