“If we have each other” by Alec Benjamin is a song about the hardships of life. It is about the hurt and pain life throws your way yet standing through it with your family, chosen or otherwise.
Benjamin talks about these hardships as a narrator, exploring the life of two people, a woman and himself. These characters go through thick and thin, but are still standing with those who they have found along the way.
The song starts somewhat abruptly, jumping straight into the story. This is where the woman is introduced. Benjamin does not sugarcoat anything about the woman. She is 19 and pregnant, just trying to make ends meet. At the end of the first verse, Benjamin says, “She would sit down at the table, tell herself that it is alright,” showing her struggles.
The second verse introduces us to a 90-year-old couple. It is inferred that the woman in the couple is the same woman from the first verse. This couple has survived hardships together even though life has been tough. He sings, “Life was never easy, they were thankful that they stayed…” This line makes it blatantly obvious that the couple has struggled like everyone else in life.
The final verse, the main narrator, a 23-year-old who fears being alone, and his sister are introduced to us. Benjamin sings, “I know they don’t have forever, and I’m scared to be alone, so I’m thankful for my sister, even though sometimes we fight,” which further references the main narrator’s fear of being alone.
I chose this song because it hits close to home for me and is very relatable. I feel so close to the song and its message that it feels like it was written for me, like all the best songs are.
Alec Benjamin was born in 1994 in Phoenix, Arizona. In 2013, Benjamin released his first extended play. Benjamin released the album “Narrated For You” in 2018, which had several of his hit songs including “If we have each other.”
You can listen to “If we had each other” by Alec Benjamin on all streaming platforms.