Though the freshly released duet mostly stays true to the original, Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé’s “Perfect” lyrics do make some subtle, but still notable, tweaks. The concept is the same — a romantic, laudatory ode to a significant other — but with a few…
Though the freshly released duet mostly stays true to the original, Ed Sheeran and Beyoncé’s “Perfect” lyrics do make some subtle, but still notable, tweaks. The concept is the same — a romantic, laudatory ode to a significant other — but with a few altered pronouns. Where Sheeran used to sing, “Well I found a woman, stronger than anyone I know,” Beyoncé swaps in “man,” and “Be my girl, I’ll be your man” has been changed to say “Be your girl, you’ll be my man.” Sheeran’s verses stay intact, and the closing stanzas the two belt out together don’t have any gender-specific references, so those also stay the same.
It’s a small shift, but it has a sizable impact, as it makes the song play more like a call-and-response. Instead of Sheeran simply serenading a woman, it now sounds like two people expressing their mutual love for one another, which drives home the sentimental message at its core. (The choral inflections that back Beyoncé’s vocals also give it a more soulful feel).
The track itself certainly isn’t old — it comes from Sheeran’s March album, Divide — but the remix breathes new life into the standout single. While detailing the collaboration during a recent interview with Channel 4 Radio, Sheeran even said he was basically going to “Despacito” the song, referencing Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s smash hit remix with Justin Bieber. Sheeran didn’t reveal who would be featured on “Perfect” until earlier on Thursday, just a few hours before its release, but he definitely delivered.
More to come…
