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Lauren Edwards

ENG 1201

Professor Flores

13 February 2022

Everybody Wants to Rule the World

Everybody Wants to Rule the World, released in 1985 by Tears for Fears is a testament

about making a difference in the world for everyone. In 2016, NSP released a new version to

carry on the message present day with their own spin. The two music videos are very similar yet

gives different meanings based on the time they were made. The cover of "Everybody Wants to

Rule the World" by NSP is a more modern version of the song that still keeps the same key

details of the original. The new song as well as the original song gives meaning by relating to

all different people and their dreams of wanting to make a change. The NSP version is more

successful for a contemporary audience because of the indirect relation to the world at the time it

was released.

“Help me make the most of freedom” is a key lyric in both songs. It directly relates to the

meaning of making a change and being who you want to be. In the original music video, it shows

the main character driving to different places around town feeling free. It also shows different

people doing different things, like riding four wheelers towards the end, giving the impression

that anyone can rule the world no matter the age or what they look like. NSP modernized the

song by adding a more retro sound as well as showing different kinds of people and showcasing

their different personalities in their video. The new version of the video shows the main
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characters of the band driving all over the country in an RV. It is a very free-spirited video.

Everyone is making the most of their freedom by driving around and doing what they want. They

are all dressed up in different costumes and different aesthetics to show the different types of

people who can make the difference. Everyone desires freedom which is what these songs are

trying to convey. The idea is that freedom comes with a price and we have to work for it.

Both songs used pathos in order to convey their message by creating emotions with the

lyrics as well as the videos. The lyrics state in the very beginning, “welcome to your life, there’s

no turning back”. This makes listeners really think about their life and connect with their

emotions about the world around them. Although the lyrics are the same, the different time

periods that the songs were made in, as well as the videos, change the meaning of the songs.

Since the original song was written during the Cold War era, it explains more about how there

are consequences to your actions and if you do not do the right thing now, then you will not be

able to fix it later. During this time, everyone desired control without pondering what would

come from it. Since in this time period it is much easier for anyone to make a difference and

make their dreams into reality, this is the reason why the meaning of NSP’s version is different.

The new version eludes to the fact of do what you want to change the world and be who or what

you want to be. It is more of a motivational song and video.

The videos are similar however, you can tell the meaning is different based on the time it

was set as well as the different characters. The original video is geared more towards older

audiences who are struggling with the world at that time and being selfish, while the new video

is geared towards people now who want to make a change to our world for the better. It is

persuading us to be different and to be okay with being different.

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“Nothing ever lasts forever”. This lyric from the song directly relates to the meaning of

both versions. There is no better time than now to make a change and try to rule the world. The

idea of making decisions that can have consequences is motivation to fix the problems we as

people have. While Tears for Fears version of the song may have had a more relevant meaning in

the past, NSP version now relates to a more modern audience. In the end it is important to realize

who you are and how you can make a difference.

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Works Cited

“Everybody Wants to Rule the World – NSP”. Uploaded by NSP. YouTube. 20 February 2022,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7CUOa7wsd0

“Tears for Fears - Everybody Wants to Rule the World (Official Music Video)”. Uploaded by

Tears for Fears. YouTube. 20 February 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=aGCdLKXNF3w