What You Wanted

INTRO

Oh, what you wanted, what you wanted, what you wanted

It's what you wanted, what you wanted, what you wanted

VERSE 1

I walked into the meeting with my notebook and my pen

Said "Tell me what you're dreaming and I'll build it all again"

They said they wanted simple, they said they wanted clean

They said they wanted minimal, the leanest thing you've seen

So I went back to the workshop, worked for thirty days and nights

Built exactly what they asked for, got every pixel right

Came back with a demo, pride was written on my face

They looked at me like strangers and said "What is this disgrace?"

CHORUS

So, don't you want what you wanted yesterday? [Oh-whoa-oh]

I carefully listened to what you had to say [Oh my god]

You said clearly this is a bare necessity [whoa-oh-oh-o-ah-oh-ooo]

I have this quote from you in my press release [Oh my god]

And you're the one for whom we built this piece [So-oh-no]

VERSE 2

They said they wanted buttons, so I gave them forty-two

They said they wanted colors, so I painted it all blue

They signed off on the wireframe, they approved the prototype

Now they're saying "Who asked for this?" like I made it up last night

The focus group said "bigger," the stakeholders said "bold"

I gave them what they asked for and they left me in the cold

The transcript's in my inbox, the recording's on the cloud

But somehow what they wanted isn't what they want right now

Oh, what you wanted, what you wanted, what you wanted

It's what you wanted, what you wanted, what you wanted

CHORUS

So, don't you want what you wanted yesterday? [Oh-whoa-oh]

I carefully listened to what you had to say [Oh my god]

You said clearly this is a bare necessity [whoa-oh-oh-o-ah-oh-ooo]

I have this quote from you in my press release [Oh my god]

And you're the one for whom we built this piece [So-oh-no]

BRIDGE

Can't count on what they say

It's baked into our D-N-A

Of who humans are today

We please each other and simply say okay

Yes, oh yes, that's what I want you to make

But then you flake, for goodness sake [Oh my god]

VERSE 3

See, people don't know what they want until they see it

They'll tell you what sounds good but they don't really mean it

We're wired to be agreeable, to nod and go along

To say yes in the moment even when we know it's wrong

The brain fills in the blanks with what it thinks you want to hear

Cognitive dissonance disappears within a year

They genuinely believe they never said those words to you

The memory rewrites itself and makes the old thing new

FINAL CHORUS

So, don't you want what you wanted yesterday? [Oh-whoa-oh]

I carefully listened to what you had to say [Oh my god]

You said clearly this is a bare necessity [whoa-oh-oh-o-ah-oh-ooo]

I have this quote from you in my press release [Oh my god]

And you're the one for whom we built this piece [So-oh-no]

OUTRO

So here's the lesson, if you're listening close

Don't build what people say they want the most

Build what they need but haven't found the words to speak

Watch what they do, not what they say

The mouth will lie but the behavior won't betray

Oh, what you wanted, what you wanted, what you wanted

It's what you wanted, what you wanted, what you wanted

What you wanted was never what you wanted anyway...