On July 2, 2023, AJR posted on social media that their father, Gary, was sick and had been in worsening condition for a year now, and that they felt as if their time with him might soon be over. Due to this, they canceled their shows for the rest of the month to spend time with him, and their fans showed an outpouring of support for Gary and the brothers.[1]
While this was happening, they were in the middle of writing songs for the album, and wrote "God is Really Real" based on their feelings about the situation. The song was not originally intended to be released on its own, however on July 4, after seeing the support their fans had shown, they decided to release the song as a single, in order to be honest with their fans about how they were feeling, and so that Gary could listen to the song before he passed, since the song was written as a message for him.[2]
The same day, the brothers recorded a simple lyric video in the hospital, which was uploaded to YouTube. 8 hours after the lyric video's release, they announced Gary's passing.[3] The song was officially released on streaming services on July 5.
Lyrics[]
[Verse 1]
My dad can't get out of bed
There's something in his lungs
I think that's what the doctor said
I gotta leave for Paris now
My band goes on at ten
And my dad can't get out of bed
The Earth is spinning like it always did
The New York Times is publishing some real important thing
And each day when the world wakes up
Our lawns will still be wet
And my dad can't get out of bed
[Chorus]
God is really real
When you really really need him
Karma just appears
And you suddenly believe it
Hear it loud and clear
Just as long as it's convenient
Life's fuckin' long 'til it stops And God's fuckin' fake 'til he's not
[Verse 2]
There's robots that are way too good at art
And everybody's sad now
And tryna get to Mars
Don't wanna hear your problems
'Cause there's just one in my head And he can't get out of bed
What if we could break you out tonight
This kind of thing happens to other dads
It don't happen to mine
I'll distract the doctors
We could sneak out with your meds
You could come along and be a roadie for the band
Come on, Dad, get out of bed
[Chrous]
God is really real
When you really really need him
Karma just appears
And you suddenly believe it
Hear it loud and clear
Just as long as it's convenient
Life's fuckin' long 'til it stops And God's fuckin' fake 'til he's not
[Verse 3]
Now it's late, I really gotta go
We can't face our feelings so we're making lots of jokes And we won't cry about it No, we'll be manly men
"I love you" sounds all corny
So I wrote this song instead
I'll sing it for you, Dad When you get out of bed
I'll sing for you when you're out of bed
