HAIM & Bon Iver - Tie you down Lyrics (2025) | Song Meaning

Tie you down Lyrics


[Verse 1]
Probably should have known by now
You don't have to read my mind 'cause I'll tell it to your face
If you wanna leave, you can or you could

[Pre-Chorus]
Put your little heart in me now
Ain't this how it's supposed to be?

[Chorus]
I want you here
But I don't know how
Not to tie you down

[Verse 2]
We could take it one day at a time
Or we could spend it all right now
Running it to the ground
How much have we left unsaid and is it better that way?

[Pre-Chorus]
If I would have changed my mind now
Would that even be allowed?

[Chorus]
I want you here
But I don't know how
To tie you down

[Bridge]
I don't wanna hold you back (I don't wanna hold you back)
Something feels wrong about that (Something feels wrong about that)
But I'm feeling all I lack
Oh, I want you so bad
I feel happy and sad (I feel happy and sad)
And it's been making me mad (And it's been making me mad)
I know that one of thеse days
We're gonna look back and (Wе're gonna look back and)

[Chorus]
I'll still want you here
But I won't know how
I'll still want you here
But I won't know how
To tie you down
_______________ End ______________

Tie you down Song Meaning (HAIM & Bon Iver)

When “Tie You Down” arrives as part of the "I Quit (Deluxe)" rollout, it immediately feels like a duet borne of longing and uncertainty — between holding on and letting go. Danielle Haim and Justin Vernon entwine their voices over sparse, warm instrumentation to dramatize that internal tug-of-war.

1. Emotional Core and Narrative

At its heart, “Tie You Down” captures the conflicted posture of love when commitment feels heavy. The speaker loves their partner, craves closeness (“I want you here”), but questions the very notion of binding someone: “I don’t know how / Not to tie you down.” The tension pulses in lines such as:

“We could take it one day at a time / Or we could spend it all right now / Running it to the ground”
“Something feels wrong about that … But I’m feeling all I lack”

The verses and bridge explore the uncertainty: if they give in and try to tether the relationship more concretely, will that suffocate or erode it? Yet resisting that impulse risks emotional distance. It’s a balancing act between vulnerability and self–preservation — wanting to love, but wanting the freedom to breathe.

In the repeated shift from “here” to “tie you down,” the song dramatizes the gap between desire and method. The voice of the song is candid and open: it acknowledges fear, mistakes, and the fragility of closeness. The bridge intensifies that with emotional extremes — “I feel happy and sad … making me mad” — painting love as both healing and destabilizing.

2. Context and Creative Genesis

Because “Tie You Down” is a newly released track as part of I Quit (Deluxe), there is not yet a deep trove of interviews about its origin. What is known:

> It is one of three new songs on the deluxe edition of I Quit.
> The song is produced by Danielle Haim, Justin Vernon, and longtime collaborator Rostam Batmanglij.
> The collaboration builds on the prior rapport between the artists, as their musical sensibilities have overlapped in previous shared work.

Looking at I Quit broadly, HAIM framed the album as a kind of release — quitting what doesn’t serve them, embracing emotional odds, leaning into risk. In that broader thematic context, “Tie You Down” feels like one of the album’s most intimate reckonings: not about grand breakup drama, but the messy, small, interior fight within commitment.

3. What the Song Offers to Listeners

> Emotional resonance: Many people in relationships or past ones will recognize the fear of closeness — the question of “how do I hold you without harming you?”
> Dual voice structure: The duet format amplifies the tension; the two voices can imply different emotional stances, or even internal dialogues.
> Nuanced vulnerability: It doesn’t demand certainty or clarity. Instead, it lingers in ambiguity. That is, in itself, a kind of honesty.
> A space for reflection: The song doesn’t provide answers so much as company in confusion. It invites listeners to feel the push-pull rather than resolve it neatly.

4. Conclusion

In sum, “Tie You Down” speaks to the messy middle of love — that place where you want to be close, but you fear closing off, where you must negotiate your own vulnerabilities with someone else’s. Its power lies not in clean closure, but in its emotional murkiness. And as a late addition to I Quit, it deepens HAIM’s narrative of emotional surrender and reinvention, now in dueling voices with Justin Vernon.

If and when interviews emerge about the song’s writing process or lyrical inspiration, we may get more direct confirmation of its backstory — until then, it remains one of the more quietly powerful, open-ended entries in HAIM’s catalog.
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FAQ Section
Who sung the song "Tie you down" by HAIM & Bon Iver?
The song "Tie you down" was sung by HAIM & Bon Iver.
Who wrote the song "Tie you down" by HAIM & Bon Iver?
Danielle Haim, Justin Vernon, Rostam, Alana Haim & Este Haim.
Who produced the song "Tie you down" by HAIM & Bon Iver?
Justin Vernon, Rostam & Danielle Haim.

Music Video


Song Details

Artists: HAIM, Bon Iver
Album: I quit (Deluxe) 
Genre: Pop
Language: English
Released: October 10, 2025