Freakshow

Life in the circus ain't easy, but the folks on the outside don't know
that the tent goes up and the tent comes down; all that they see is the show
The ladies on the horses look so pretty, and the lions are looking real mad
and some of the clowns are happy, while some of the clowns are sad.

But underneath, there's another expression that the makeup isn't making:
Life under the big top is about freedom, is about faking.
There's an art to the laughter; there's a science
There's a lot of love and compliance

We live to hear the slack-jawed gasping; we live under a halo of held breath;
When the children raise up a giant shield of laughter, it's like they're fending of death
Together we make something bigger than any one of us alone,
and then the clowns will take of their makeup, and the people will go home

But life on the outside ain't easy:
No sequins; no elephants; no parading around.
Yeah, the circus comes and the circus goes, but they're stuck in this fucking town

So welcome to the freakshow... yeah, here we go...

Freakshow, Ani Di Franco, 1999