‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ by Morgan Wallen - Lyrics & Meaning

Released as part of Morgan Wallen's ground-breaking 2023 opus, One Thing At A Time, ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ embodies the refreshingly genre-fluid blueprint that underpins the project.

Although fans had to wait until One Thing At A Time's March 3 release date before they could hear the full version of ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’, there was already a considerable level of anticipation around the sultry, beat-driven track, courtesy of a viral video captured during Morgan Wallen's album preview party the week before.

As ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ was playing through each attendee's individual headphones, a somewhat elderly lady proceeded to steal the show with her light-footed dance-moves.

It wasn't long before the ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ clip caught the attention of Morgan Wallen himself, who re-shared the footage, teasing, “fav fan ever. y’all help me find this lady”.

‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ is another prime example of Morgan Wallen's distinctive, seamless Hip-Hop-country fusion, which propelled another One Thing At A Time stand-out, ‘Last Night’ to the top of the Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for 16 weeks (and counting).

As a result, it wasn't a tremendous surprise when ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ emerged as one of the most streamed tracks from the album, with the track surging up the Mediabase country charts at the start of the Fall at an unprecedented pace for a non-single.

It's unsurprisingly become one of the many highlights of Morgan Wallen's setlist while out on the road as part of his hugely popular 2023 One Night At A Time world tour.

On July 6 2023, ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ was officially certified Platinum by the RIAA, with the song earning Morgan Wallen his 10th No. 1 title in October when it topped the Billboard Country Airplay chart.

On ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’, Morgan Wallen deploys his lethal combination of a brooding, alluring electric guitar riff and an overlayed 808-driven beat. It feels reminiscent of other Hip-Hop-leaning tracks in Wallen's formidable arsenal, such as ‘You Proof’ and ‘Wasted On You’.

However, the now mullett-less megastar ensures the track is still grounded firmly in the country sphere, with Morgan Wallen's distinctive, charismatic drawl serving as the song's keystone.

The drum pattern remains relatively straightforward throughout, with Wallen's clipped, staccato delivery in the hook giving ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ an additional sense of bravado.

The introduction of rattling hi-hats and a deep, muted bass gives ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ the dark, moody ambience of a trap song taken from the catalogue of one of Wallen's beloved Atlanta rappers.

This is most likely a result of Charlie Handsome's role in the creation of ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’, with the Atlanta native having previously helmed hazy, serpentine cuts from the likes of Travis Scott, Drake, Gunna, Post Malone, Lil Baby and Young Thug.

One of the most satisfying elements of ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ is its flurry of internal rhymes, which have become a staple of Ashley Gorley's ACM-Award-winning songwriting style.

This is epitomised by the pitter-patter of lines such as “Comin’ over tonight, wish that truck in your drive was mine / Just like you know it's supposed to be”, where the assonance of ‘tonight’, ‘drive’, ‘mine’ and ‘like’ all knit together to form an irresistible lyrical structure.

“Don't know where you at, don't know where you've been
Don't know nothin' 'bout that boy you're into
Don't feel bad for you, but I feel bad for him
And all the hell you gon' be puttin' him through
Probably tell him we're a burnt out flame
Probably tell him that I ain't been on your mind
How I ain't nothin' but a long gone thing
You can cuss my name, but baby, don't you lie”

‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ finds Morgan Wallen adopting the perspective of an ex-lover talking to his previous girlfriend, and underlining (rather self-confidently) that he won't be easy to forget.

Morgan Wallen expresses a superficial feeling of sympathy for her new boyfriend, as he knows she still harbours feelings for him. The Sneedville songsmith imagines her misleadingly telling her new partner that Wallen is merely a “burnt out flame” and that their relationship “ain't nothin’ but a long gone thing”.

However, as the final line of the opening verse hints, it seems like - at least from our protagonist's perspective - his ex-girlfriend is far from over their fiery relationship.

“When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?
When you're ridin' where he's drivin', are you missin' my street?
Every time you close your eyes, tell me, who do you see?
When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' bout me?

Wallen proceeds to sketch out a variety of scenarios where his old flame's thoughts should be focused solely around her new boyfriend, but instead, he assumes she's still pining for him.

The questions posed in the chorus are clearly rhetorical, with the narrator simply trying to get his ex to admit she's unable to leave his reflection in the rear-view mirror.

When looking at the lyrics on paper, ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ seems tinged with a sense of arrogance and braggadocio. Yet Morgan Wallen delivers it with his trademark charm and a twinkle in his eye, which transforms this into a playful, swaggering anthem.

“Comin' over tonight, wish that truck in your drive was mine
Just like you know it's supposed to be
When you're up in his bed, am I up in your head?
Making you crazy, tell me, baby, are you thinkin' 'bout me?
Are you thinkin' 'bout, are you thinkin' 'bout
When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?”

As the rest of the hook unfurls, Morgan Wallen continues to try and tease an admission out of his ex that she still longs for him. He wonders whether their past relationship crosses her mind even when she and her current partner are in the middle of their most intimate moments (“When you're up in his bed, am I up in your head?”).

Underneath the layers of self-assurance, Wallen implies the objective of all this is to try and rekindle their romance, as he suggests they're still meant to be together (“Comin' over tonight, wish that truck in your drive was mine / Just like you know it's supposed to be”).

“Do you hide your phone? Did you change my name?
When he wants to go to our go-to place
Do you tell him you can't? Then go out of your way
To be somewhere, any damn where I ain't”

Morgan Wallen asks how far his ex is willing to go in order to mask her feelings for him, as he wonders if she's edited his name in her phone so her new partner won't know she's still texting him.

He presumes she can't even take her boyfriend to her favoured secret spot when she was with Wallen, as the echo of his memory will be felt even stronger here.

Some speculate that ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ is about an affair, but the lyrics heavily imply it's instead about the tug-of-war between a new relationship and nagging feelings for an ex.

Aside from the vague reference to the fact that the exes still text, there's never any suggestion the two are acting on their lingering feelings for one another. The line about wishing Wallen's truck was in her drive instead of her new partner's 4x4 emphasises that they're not currently together. ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ appears to be about the tantalising prospect of reigniting their spark, rather than it being about cheating.

“Don't know where you at
Girl, I know where you oughta be”

Once again, we get confirmation Morgan Wallen wants to give the relationship another shot, as he attempts to convince his ex that they belong in each other's arms.

Although Morgan Wallen is yet to comment on ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ specifically, when talking about the creative process behind the album as a whole to Country 106.7, he outlined, “I've got a few different sounds and stuff that I've never experimented with before on this album...all the songs say something different too”.

Despite having explored Hip-Hop-inspired sonics on past records, Wallen does so much more prominently on One Thing At A Time offerings such as ‘Thinkin’ Bout Me’ and ‘180 (Lifestyle)’, the latter of which interpolates Young Thug's ‘Lifestyle’.

In a separate interview, Wallen touched on how the experience of crafting each song for One Thing At A Time differed from previous projects, due to him now being a father, “Making an album as a dad is a little bit more challenging just time-wise, you know, but luckily I got to have him come in [the studio] and hang out with me quite a bit...”

The ‘Thought You Should Know’ hitmaker went on to endearingly recall, “Indie took over a lot when he came in here, pressing buttons, and luckily he didn't mess nothing up too bad...you never know, maybe he'll be a producer one day, he seemed to enjoy it quite a bit. I know we all enjoyed having him in here...just a fresh energy and a good time”.

“Don't know where you at, don't know where you've been
Don't know nothin' 'bout that boy you're into
Don't feel bad for you, but I feel bad for him
And all the hell you gon' be puttin' him through
Probably tell him we're a burnt out flame
Probably tell him that I ain't been on your mind
How I ain't nothin' but a long gone thing
You can cuss my name, but baby, don't you lie

When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?
When you're ridin' where he's drivin', are you missin' my street?
Every time you close your eyes, tell me, who do you see?
When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' bout me?
Comin' over tonight, wish that truck in your drive was mine
Just like you know it's supposed to be
When you're up in his bed, am I up in your head?
Making you crazy, tell me, baby, are you thinkin' 'bout me?
Are you thinkin' 'bout, are you thinkin' 'bout
When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?

Do you hide your phone? Did you change my name?
When he wants to go to our go-to place
Do you tell him you can't? Then go out of your way
To be somewhere, any damn where I ain't

When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?
When you're ridin' where he's drivin', are you missin' my street?
Every time you close your eyes, tell me, who do you see?
When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?
Comin' over tonight, wish that truck in your drive was mine
Just like you know it's supposed to be
When you're up in his bed, am I up in your head?
Making you crazy, tell me, baby, are you thinkin' 'bout me?
Are you thinkin' 'bout, are you thinkin' 'bout
When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?

Don't know where you at
Girl, I know where you oughta be

When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?
When you're ridin' where he's drivin', are you missin' my street?
Every time you close your eyes, tell me, who do you see?
When you're tastin' what he's drinkin', are you thinkin' 'bout me?
Comin' over tonight, wish that truck in your drive was mine
Just like you know it's supposed to be
When you're up in his bed, am I up in your head?
Making you crazy, tell me, baby, are you thinkin' 'bout me?
Yeah, are you thinkin' 'bout me?
Are you thinkin' 'bout me?”

For more on Morgan Wallen, see below: