From the Beatles iconic song to Let It Be Love

Unknown Speaker

Hi everyone, and welcome back to the Life Lyrics Podcast—where, as always, we dig beneath the melodies to find the stories hiding underneath. And tonight’s story—oh, Paul, I could hardly wait for this one—starts with the Beatles. It’s almost poetic, isn’t it? That your song “Let It Be Love” actually began with you watching, was it a Beatles documentary, late at night…?

Paul

Yeah, it was one of those YouTube rabbit holes, honestly. I was up way too late—can’t remember if it was midnight or... anyway, there was this documentary on Paul McCartney talking about how he wrote “Let It Be.” And I don’t know, there’s something about that phrase. It’s so simple. Like, eternal simplicity, right? But, for me—my head immediately went, “okay, for my world, for Life Lyrics, it’s got to be ‘Let It Be Love.’” It was like this lightbulb, but it was also, sort of… not just a song title, it almost felt like, I dunno, a prayer? Something I’d been wanting in my own life, and just… yeah, I wanted to put that wish into the world.

Unknown Speaker

I love that, Paul. I really do. And it’s funny, because I’ve had those Beatles nights myself, you know—the songs that make you wish for something… something you can’t quite say? For me it’s always been… like, I’d be up at three in the morning, penning wedding vows for these couples in Paris, and secretly scribbling a few lines for myself, hoping one day that longing would, I don’t know, finally find its way home. Isn’t it mad how old songs can nudge us forward like that?

Paul

Absolutely, it’s wild. And it’s like, when I landed on “Let It Be Love,” I knew it had to be both an homage to the Beatles, but also something really personal. That wish for something real—after, you know, all the half-hearted maybe-loves—I guess that just became the backbone of the whole song.

Unknown Speaker

You totally set that tone from the start: “I’ve been down this road before, cheap sparks and half-closed doors, kisses that don’t mean a thing.” I mean, if exhaustion could be written into a verse, you did it. Was it hard going back to that place when you wrote it?

Paul

Yeah, it’s... it’s a strange thing, right? I’d… I’d sort of lived those little letdowns—connections that felt electric for a second, but then you realize, it’s just surface. So many ‘almosts’. That first verse is, basically, me calling myself out for all those empty scripts, you know? Then the pre-chorus comes in—“if you’re gonna come close, don’t play the ghost”—that’s the line in the sand for me: if you’re coming near, come as yourself, not just as another maybe or as someone about to vanish.

Unknown Speaker

I kept coming back to that line, actually—“don’t play the ghost.” It’s so vulnerable. And I’m curious: do you find it easier writing those raw, heart-on-the-sleeve lines, or is it sometimes safer to be clever, to hide behind wordplay?

Paul

Oh, I honestly wish I could hide more. Sometimes my science-y brain tries, but with this song—it just didn’t work. The cleverness felt fake for these feelings, you know? The exhaustion, the line between hoping and guarding yourself… it demanded honesty. Actually, someone messaged me after this came out—they said, “I finally feel seen.” They’d been in this cycle of letting people in, then getting burned, and the song was like this nudge to stop hiding. That’s kind of the hope running through it. Yeah, you’re tired, but you still want to risk the truth.

Unknown Speaker

That’s honestly beautiful. It reminds me a bit of what we talked about in our ‘Me and My Broken Heart’ episode—how even in the thick of heartbreak, there’s that tiny thread of hope left. Here, that hope is quieter, but maybe braver? Like, “I’m tired, but I’d still choose something honest over being safe.”

Paul

Right, that’s it. It’s almost like, the more tired you are, the more you crave the real thing—not another nearly-moment. All the clever lines in the world can’t shield you if what you want is something true.

Unknown Speaker

Can we talk about that bridge? Because, oh my God, it hits so quietly and then—boom. “If we break, let it break something real. I’m done with the fake, the almost, the steal—I’d rather fall for something true than stay safe and never know you.” That’s… that’s massive. And then the whole chorus just swells up with, like, pure surrender. Were you genuinely ready to risk everything when you wrote that?

Paul

Honestly… I think the best songs come from that place where you aren’t ready, but you write it anyway, because you have to. I mean, my whole background is, like, logical thinking—science, tech, numbers, right? But none of that’s any good when it comes to love. In fact, I tried to rationalize things for so long, and it just… fell flat. But with music—you get to say, “I’m scared, but I want what’s real, even if it breaks me.” That honesty, that letting go of safety, that's what made the bridge and final chorus ring true for me.

Unknown Speaker

It’s so true. I’ve seen it so many times, writing vows for all those couples in Paris—there’s always a moment where someone has to let go of the safety net, right? To stand there, trembling, and say, “Even if this hurts, at least it’s real.” That’s what the bridge brings. Every vow, every lyric worth anything, comes from that leap.

Paul

Exactly. If it’s gonna change you, let it; if it’s gonna break you, I’ll take it—those lines in the final chorus are kind of… my own way of signing up for whatever love brings, as long as it’s not fake.

Unknown Speaker

And, honestly, that makes “Let It Be Love” maybe the bravest song you’ve shared yet. I hope everyone listening, wherever they are, hears that invitation: let it be messy, let it scare you, but above all, let it be real. That’s the only kind of love worth singing about, isn’t it?

Paul

Couldn’t have said it better. So—whatever you’re longing for tonight, I hope you get to risk something genuine, too. That’s what makes all these stories matter.

Unknown Speaker

Thank you, Paul. And thanks to everyone for listening in tonight. Whether you’re up late with an old Beatles song or scribbling your own secret vow—may you find the courage to make it real. We’ll see you next time, with more stories behind the lyrics. Goodnight, Paul!

Paul

Goodnight, Emily. Goodnight, everyone. Let it be love—always. See you soon.