Decoding Adele’s ‘Hello’

The hit song from the album 25 that reached number one in 28 different countries has fans desperately searching for plausible theories and interpretations. There are four common theories among fans. 

“Hello, it’s me. I was wondering if after all these years we’d like to meet, to go over everything.”

This is referring to someone that either she hurt, they hurt her, or she just wants to catch up with them after a supposed break up.

“They say times supposed to heal ya, but I ain’t done much healing.”

Something dramatic happened in the past, and she still hasn’t recovered from it. This line is referring to the saying “time heals all wounds.” She feels like she shouldn’t be hurting anymore, but she is.

“Hello, can you hear me? I’m in California, dreaming about who we used to be, when we were younger and free. I’ve forgotten how it felt before the world fell at our feet.”

Obviously, Adele is in California thinking about someone or something from her past. The person might be deceased. They have made memories in California, and Adele is possibly hoping that the person will come back. She is remembering the way the world was before something major occurred.

“There’s such a difference between us and a million miles.”

This is can be referencing her thinking about her friends, family, and old life in England. Another way of looking at it, is that she is talking about how there is no way that Adele and the person, will get back together.

“Hello from the other side. I must of called a thousand time, to tell you I’m sorry for everything that I’ve done. But when I call, you never seem to be home.”

Adele is referring to the other side of a heartbreak, the world, or possibly death. She has been constantly calling someone, and hasn’t gotten a reply. Then, Adele goes on to say that she is sorry. At this point, she knows the person is avoiding her. The person has locked her out of their life because of something she has done.

“Hello, how are you? It’s so typical of me to talk about myself, I’m sorry. I hope that your well. Did you ever make it out of that town, where nothing ever happens?”

Trying to get closure for something that happened, Adele hopes she can talk to the person. The person in question, probably mentioned how much she talks about herself. Adele is apologizing for something that the person mentioned, most likely in an argument. She is concerned and misses the love that they had for each other. The word “town” could be a metaphor for their love. She is wondering if he made it out of the town(their love) and moved on. “Where nothing ever happens” is referring to them being together. There were a few moments of love, but not enough. Adele has moved on, but misses being together.

“It’s no secret, that the both of us are running out of time.”

She is talking about life. She and the person have a limited time on Earth. Adele could also be talking about their love for each other.

The four most common theories are that Adele is talking about her and an ex, her old life, someone who died, or her old self. It could also be a combination. She could be talking about her old self, life, or lover, who has died. There is much speculation over who this song is really about. In the music video, there is a guy that is supposedly her ex. Many artists do this to have meaning for the video. She might not be talking about her ex.

In an interview, Adele talked about her newest record.

“There is some darkness on it just because I like to do dramatic, I’m a bit of a drama queen. It’s not as themed as my last record. The reason I labeled it a ‘make-up record,’ it sounds super cliché, but my last record was labeled a ‘break-up record,’ and rightly so, because it was a break-up record. This record is all about how I feel as opposed to how someone else has made me feel, it’s about how I made myself feel.” This makes many people wonder, is “Hello” about a lost loved one?

Is “Hello” about her old self, ex, life, and did any of them die? Which theory do you think is correct?

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