Line #135 Main/ChangingChorus


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5	[[quoteright:350:[[Music/{{Coldplay}} https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20210808_223110_1.jpg]]]]
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7	Most people think of choruses as the part of a song which doesn't change. However, there are always exceptions, and this trope is for those exceptions.
8
9	Sometimes, the chorus will change a little every time. This is usually used for comedy, to make the song more interesting, or to make the song follow a storyline. Other times, the song will mainly stay the same, but have one chorus that's a bit different.
10
11	This is usually at the end, and it might be because the story has finished, so one of the lines is no longer true (e.g. "I'm waiting for the bus" might turn into "I waited for the bus" in the final chorus).
12
13	Compare TruckDriversGearChange, where a song [[{{Modulation}} modulates upward]], SmallStartBigFinish for when the song's intensity rises, and DualMeaningChorus for when the ''meaning'' of the chorus changes. Can overlap with ExpositoryPronoun or CharacterDevelopment. Often happens in an AgeProgressionSong. Compare MadLibsCatchphrase. Contrast LimitedLyricsSong.
14
15	----
16	!!Example subpages:
17	[[index]]
18	* ChangingChorus/{{Music}}
19	[[/index]]
20
21	!!Other examples:
22	[[foldercontrol]]
23
24	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
25	* ''Manga/AsteroidInLove'''s ending theme "Yōzora" has a different chorus with its second verse.
26	** The chorus for the first verse and coda:
27	--->The future we drew\
28	is on a path long and far away\
29	There may be smiles, there may be tears\
30	I wish I can share them with you\
31	If there's something we would like to find\
32	In the depths of this shining sky\
33	I should believe I'm not alone\
34	As long as I start the way with you
35	** The chorus for the second verse:
36	--->I hope what I wish to do\
37	will shine upon this world we see\
38	There may be hopes, there may be doubts\
39	I wish we can illuminate each other\
40	If there's something we would like to make it happen\
41	At the intersection of time and space\
42	Let us burn like the stars\
43	and color up the [[TitleDrop night sky]]
44	* ''Flower of Hope'', the ending theme of the AnimatedAdaptation of ''Manga/KotouraSan'', has its chorus sung four times, each time with different lyrics. Given the song is as much about the trope of HealTheCutie as the series itself, it is {{justified\|trope}}.
45	* "Departure", the opening theme of the 2011 anime adaptation of ''Manga/HunterXHunter'', has a chorus that changes completely after every verse, save for a consistent rhyme scheme and a few lines of GratuitousEnglish always being in the same part of the chorus. This allows a different verse of the song to be used every time the series's OP changes.
46	[[/folder]]
47
48	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
49	* ''WesternAnimation/Frozen2013'':
50	** The chorus to "The First Time in Forever" changes every time, but it still counts as a chorus because it has the song title several times in each one.
51	** In "Let it Go", the chorus changes every time, with the only consistent lines being "Let it go! Let it go!" and "Let the storm rage on".
52	* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'', all of the songs with multiple choruses ("Part of Your World", "Under the Sea", "Poor Unfortunate Souls", and "Kiss the Girl") have the chorus change each time, with the only words remaining consistent being the song titles.
53	* In the animated adaptation of ''Literature/LoskutikAndTheCloud'', the horse's second song has a chorus that only includes one phrase that always gets repeated: "And what else can one wish, and what else can one dream of?" After that phrase, each repetition of the chorus describes a different thing the horse dreams of: [[MundaneLuxury a cold brook in the first chorus, rain, fresh leaves and flowers in the second, a sea and clouds in the sky in the third]].
54	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}'': In "I've Got a Dream", the song's title is the only thing that's consistent about the chorus, and even then it occasionally changes to "He's got a dream", "She's got a dream", or "We've got a dream".
55	[[/folder]]
56
57	[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
58	* ''Film/MaryPoppins'':
59	** The chorus to the "Fidelity, Fiduciary Bank" song goes, "Tuppence, [adverb], [adverb], [adverb] invested in the... to be specific, in the Dawes, Tomes, Mousley, Grubbs, Fidelity, Fiduciary Bank."
60	** The chorus to "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" usually goes, "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious, even though the sound of it is something quite atrocious, if you say it loud enough you'll always sound precocious: supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!". However, the final chorus is [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment just the song title sung four times]].
61	* ''Film/MuppetTreasureIsland'': The opening song "[[PirateSong Shiver My Timbers]]" has the chorus change four times, all appropriate for the pirates singing it as they bury Captain Flint's treasure:
62	**
63	--->Shiver my timbers, shiver my soul\
64	Yo-ho, heave ho!\
65	There are men whose hearts are as black as coal\
66	Yo-ho, heave ho!
67	**
68	--->Shiver my timbers, shiver my sides\
69	Yo-ho, heave ho!\
70	There are hungers as strong as the wind and tides\
71	Yo-ho, heave ho!
72	**
73	--->Shiver my timbers, shiver my bones\
74	Yo-ho, heave ho!\
75	There are secrets that sleep with old Davy Jones\
76	Yo-ho, heave ho!
77	**
78	--->Shiver my timbers, shiver my sails\
79	'''Dead men tell no tales!''''' '''BANG'''
80	[[/folder]]
81
82	[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
83	* In ''Series/SesameStreet'':
84	** The song "Be-Doodle-De-Dum" usually has "It's such a good thing to say" in the chorus, but the last one changes it to "An excellent thing to say."
85	** The song "Accidents Happen" mainly has a consistent chorus, but in some verses, the line "Night or day" is repeated and other times it's followed by "They happen night or day".
86	** "You've Got to Be Patient to Be a Patient" not only has a changing chorus, but several different versions. In the version sung to Big Bird, for instance, one chorus mentions "taking medicine and eating off a tray", while in the one with the little girl, this isn't mentioned. The only thing common amongst all choruses in all versions is the song title, plus all the rhymes are "-ay" words (say, play, day, way, etc).
87	* ''Series/TreasureAttic'': The song "Achoo, I've Got a Cold" has two choruses.
88	** The first one goes:
89	--->I remember when I washed my hair\
90	Then I went outside in the evening air\
91	My daddy said, 'Your head is wet; don't go!'\
92	[[CatchYourDeathOfCold But now I've got a sniffy nose and a cold]].
93	** The second one goes:
94	--->I remember it was yesterday\
95	When my mama said, 'John, put your jacket on!'\
96	But I was busy; didn't wanna stop,\
97	And now I've got a stuffy nose and a cough.
98	** After the instrumental break, both choruses are said in succession.
99	[[/folder]]
100
101	[[folder:Theatre]]
102	* ''Theatre/ThirtyFiveMillimeterAMusicalExhibition'':
103	** The chorus of "Cut You a Piece" first goes "I cut you a piece of me, I cut you a piece of me./And where you go I will go too./Yes, I am now a part of you." After describing Jessie's death in a car crash, it changes the last line to "I lost my life when I lost you." The final choruses, sung by another couple, take a bittersweet approach to the story:
104	-->I cut you a piece of me, I cut you a piece of me.\
105	For where you go I will go too.\
106	I am now a part of you.\
107	From now on I'm half a soul, Without you I can't behold.\
108	So cut me a piece of you,\
109	Cut me a piece of you, and where I go you'll always be.\
110	Oh, you are the start of me, oh, you are the start of me.
111	** "The Ballad of Sara Berry," about an AlphaBitch's desperate attempts to be prom queen, has the first two choruses sung as thus:
112	--->You taste the silver, Sara! You taste the crown.\
113	You thirst for blood from the roses in hand.\
114	You spoil for sash and scepter, music to dance,\
115	As they crown you Queen of High School Land.
116	*** But the third verse, which occurs after Sara has undergone SanitySlippage and [[spoiler:killed all her rivals to become prom queen]], describes her "triumph":
117	--->You got your silver Sara, you got your crown\
118	You got their blood on your roses in hand\
119	You donned the sash and scepter, doing a dance,\
120	As you crowned you Queen of High School Land!
121	*** It's then followed by yet another chorus, describing how [[spoiler:Sara was arrested and lost everything she was fighting for]]:
122	--->They wrapped your wrists in silver, they took your crown\
123	As they washed your bloody fingers and hands.\
124	Into a tight straitjacket, small padded cell,\
125	As you screamed, "I'm Queen of High School Land!"
126	* ''Theatre/BeMoreChill'': "Michael in the Bathroom" changes its chorus three times, with the final chorus replacing the first few lines with a beat and also adding a few couplets at the end.
127	** The first chorus:
128	--->Michael in the bathroom\
129	Michael in the bathroom at a party\
130	Forget how long its been\
131	I'm just Michael in the bathroom\
132	Michael in the bathroom at a party\
133	No, you can't come in\
134	I'm waiting it out 'til it's time to leave\
135	And picking at grout as I softly grieve\
136	I'm just\
137	Michael who you don't know\
138	Michael flying solo\
139	Michael in the bathroom by himself
140	** The second chorus:
141	--->Michael in the bathroom\
142	Michael in the bathroom at a party\
143	I half regret the beers\
144	Michael in the bathroom\
145	Michael in the bathroom at a party\
146	As I choke back the tears\
147	I'll wait as long as I need\
148	'Til my face is dry\
149	Or I'll just blame it on weed\
150	Or something in my eye\
151	I'm just Michael\
152	Who you don't know\
153	Michael flyin' solo\
154	Michael in the bathroom by himself
155	** And the final chorus:
156	--->''[music plays over where the line would go]'' ...at a party\
157	Is there a sadder sight\
158	''[hums the tune of the "Michael in the bathroom" line]''\
159	Michael in the bathroom at a party\
160	This is a heinous night\
161	I wish I stayed at home instead\
162	Watching cable porn\
163	Or wish I offed myself instead\
164	Wish I was never born\
165	I'm just Michael\
166	Who's a loner\
167	So he must be a stoner\
168	Rides a PT Cruiser\
169	God, he's such a loser\
170	Michael flying solo\
171	Who you think that you know\
172	Michael in the bathroom by himself
173	* Creator/GilbertAndSullivan did this in a number of their works, with the chorus repeating the last few lines of the verse. In most of these cases the basic structure of the chorus remains the same but the words change to match the contents of the verse.
174	** "When I Was a Lad", the Admiral's song from ''Theatre/HMSPinafore'', has each repetition of the chorus describe a different "virtue" (polishing handles, copying letters, doing little thinking for himself etc.) for which he was made "the ruler of the Queen's Navy".
175	** "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General" from ''Theatre/PiratesOfPenzance'' uses a similar structure with the chorus repeating the last example given in each verse.
176	* In ''Theatre/LesMiserables'', the chorus to "Red and Black" changes depending on who's singing it. The first and third time, it's a revolutionary anthem sung by political leader Enjolras inspiring people to ignore their personal problems and go fight at the barricades. The second time, it's a duet with the "Red--, Black--" portions sung by Enjolras, while Marius sings the other parts to talk about his romantic troubles and his conflict about whether to go fight or seek his love. The last time, the chorus becomes a CrowdSong that repeats the first version, where everyone proclaims their determination to go fight.
177	--> "Red! The blood of angry men/I feel my soul on fire"
178	--> "Black! The dark of ages past/My world if she's not there"
179	* The chorus of "All You Wanna Do" in ''Theatre/SixTheMusical'' changes in accordance with who is trying to sleep with Katherine Howard at this stage of her life. However, it's most noticeable with Thomas Culpeper where the entire chorus changes to reflect the fact she realizes Culpeper (and all the other men in her life) only want to sleep with her. Similarly, the previous choruses are generally more upbeat but by the time she reaches the last one, poor Katherine is in tears because the one man she thought was her friend has all but forced himself on her. (And this leads to her beheading.)
180	[[/folder]]
181
182	[[folder:Video Games]]
183	* For [=JTMusic=]'s song on ''VideoGame/FreddyFazbearsPizzeriaSimulator'', "Now Hiring at Freddy's", the chorus changes every verse, showing off how the song slowly gets more twisted as time goes on:
184	** First Verse:
185	--->Come on down to Freddy's!\
186	We'll make a tycoon of you!\
187	Invest all of your savings, cause\
188	You're gonna double it soon!\
189	Minimize the casualties\
190	And please! Just don't [[YouWannaGetSued get us sued!]]\
191	Every shift will be fun, if you get your duties done\
192	And clean up the blood off your shoes!
193	** Second verse:
194	--->Come on down to Freddy's!\
195	You ought to stay for a while!\
196	If any children go missing...\
197	Just don't let them go on file!\
198	Don't get any blood on the carpet\
199	It's easier cleaning the tile!\
200	And if a kid [[WouldHurtAChild ends up dead]]\
201	[[LeaveNoWitnesses Kill all the witnesses next!]]\
202	And make sure it's done with a [[SlasherSmile smile...]]
203	** Third Verse:
204	--->Come on down to Freddy's!\
205	We'll [[YourSoulIsMine suck the soul out of you!]]\
206	A work shift can be deadly, but\
207	We'll bring you back to life soon!\
208	Maximize the casualties\
209	At this point, [[{{Understatement}} we're gonna get sued!]]\
210	And before you can leave, clean up the carpets with bleach\
211	And we'll make a monster of you!
212	* ''VideoGame/Persona5Strikers'': One of the boss themes, "Counter Strike", changes during its second chorus, rewording it to first person and sounding more affirmative. For example, "it's your turn to get it right" later turns into "finally, I got it right."
213	* ''VideoGame/PersonaQ2NewCinemaLabyrinth'': The game's opening theme, "Road Less Taken." While retaining the same metaphors and general theme of individuality, the first and second choruses have some slightly different lyrics. The third time the chorus is sung, it's based on the second one, but has a new perspective and changes "you" to "we" (i.e. "the road less taken could be where you're meant to be" becomes "the road less taken could be where we're meant to be").
214	* "Lifelight", the main theme for ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', starts with a rather pessimistic chorus detailing the characters predicament at the start of the "World of Light" story mode. However, this later changes to a more optimistic version as the characters band together to face the challenge ahead of them.
215	** First version:
216	--->Every soul contains a whisper of light,\
217	Gleaming faintly as it dwindles from sight.\
218	No escape, no greater fate to be made.\
219	In the end, the chains of time will not break.\
220	Colors weave into a spire of flame.\
221	Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed.\
222	Bear this sword against the cold of the night.\
223	Search your soul and reawaken the undying light.
224	** Second version:
225	--->Every soul contains a whisper of light,\
226	Growing louder as it calls to unite.\
227	From the distance sings a chorus of souls,\
228	Rising slowly, stirring heat from the coals.\
229	Colors weave into a spire of flame.\
230	Distant sparks call to a past still unnamed.\
231	Bear this sword against the cold of the night.\
232	Light will guide you on your way to the ultimate fight.
233	[[/folder]]
234
235	[[folder:Web Animation]]
236	* In the second appearance of "Inside of Every Demon is a Rainbow" from ''{{WebAnimation/HazbinHotel}}'' the Radio Demon changes the titular chorus to "Inside of Every Demon is a Lost Cause".
237	* ''WebAnimation/TranslationsGoneWrong'': In their version of "[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic Babs Seed]]", the chorus is different both times.
238	** The first time, it's:
239	--->Meme Seed, Meme Seed. Oh, can't find the loo.\
240	I am full, ready to bust. I'll settle for a vase!\
241	Meme Seed, Meme Seed. Air horn have to die.\
242	Morals love the stink of egg. Humans get us extra cash.\
243	Meme Seed, Meme Seed, I like to slam, slam [[ToiletHumour pee]].
244	** The second chorus goes:
245	--->Meme Seed, Meme Seed. Owner gaily knew.\
246	Time to [[AssShove put it in our arse]], ah pull it, bad [[FromTheMouthsOfBabes sluts]].\
247	Meme Seed, Meme Seed, Ellen have to die.\
248	Murder looms like stinky egg, [[HumansAreBastards humans can't be assed to care.]]
249	[[/folder]]
250
251	[[folder:Web Original]]
252	* ''WebVideo/BrianHull'': "We're Not So Bad" is a parody of "I've Got a Dream" from ''WesternAnimation/{{Tangled}}''. Just like the original, the only consistent line in the chorus is the title, which sometimes changes to "He's not so bad", "I'm not so bad", or "She's not so bad".
253	* ''WebVideo/DannyGonzalez'':
254	** "[=LaCroix=]"'s chorus starts out with the line:
255	---> ''Like a party in my mouth, but the kind of party that ends at 9''
256	** Which later changes to:
257	---> ''Like a party in my mouth, if everybody at the party just died''
258	* ''WebVideo/TwistedTranslations'': In the version of "Let it Go" from ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen\|2013}}'', just like the original, there's only one consistent line in the chorus. This time, it's "Give up! Give up!". The chorus of "For the First Time in Forever" also has only one consistent line-- "For the first term of office indefinite", and even that becomes "[[BlindIdiotTranslation For firstly the eternal]]" at the end.
259	* "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZEPgLkzhwE Win the Race]]" is a ''WesternAnimation/AdventuresOfSonicTheHedgehog'' [=YTPMV=] featuring Robotnik trying to beat Sonic in a race. The chorus features him talking about his plans to cheat, and midway through the song, it changes after he does win the race. For example, it starts, "Just win the race! / I don't care what it takes! / Just find a way to make me happy!" and later changes to "I win the race! / I don't care what I did! / I won the race and now I'm happy!"
260	** "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YapeV5XBgQ4 Robotnik Rock]] features the repeated line "Where did I go wrong with you?", which changes midway through to "Where did I go wrong with ''me''?"
261	[[/folder]]
262
263	[[folder:Western Animation]]
264	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Animaniacs}}'':
265	** In "The Monkey Song", the only consistent line in the chorus is "I don't know what to say! The monkeys won't do!", and even that gets changed to "We don't know what to say! The Warners won't do!" at the end.
266	** In "Shnitzelbank", each chorus is a list of items pointed out in the previous verse, followed by "O de schone, o de schone, o de schone schnitzelbank."
267	* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'':
268	** In "Babs Seed" from "One Bad Apple", the second chorus pauses to add non-chorus lyrics, then when it resumes, it repeats the "She's just a bad, bad" line twice before ending.
269	** In "Winter Wrap-Up" from the episode of the same name, the first chorus says, "Winter wrap-up, winter wrap-up" only twice, but the second chorus says it three times, then three times again for the third, and the third one says, "'Cause tomorrow, spring is here" several times instead of twice.
270	* ''WesternAnimation/SidTheScienceKid'': The song "The Journey of a Germ" has two lines, and one is always different but the other one is "_____ on my journey of a germ".
271	* ''WesternAnimation/WeBareBears'': The Castilian Spanish version of "Forever My Heart" from the episode "Everyone's Tube" changes the "Forever my baby, forever my heart" part of the chorus every time. The first time, it's "Y para siempre yo te voy a amar"[[note]]"And I'll love you forever"[[/note]], the second time, it's "Tu eres mi chica, siempre te amaré"[[note]]"You're my girl, I'll always love you"[[/note]], and the third and final time the chorus is sung, it's "Por siempre mi chica, yo te voy a amar."[[note]]"Forever my girl, I'll love you"
272	* Italian and Japanese dubs of WesternAnimation/LittleEinsteins have every verse of the theme song different, compared to the same two verses before and after the TruckDriversGearChange (present in pretty much every dub). The Italian 1st/2nd verse and 3rd/4th verse "We're going on a trip, Climb aboard, etc." follows.
273	->''"Annie: Voliamo un po' più su dov'è il cielo tutto blu\
274	All: I Fantastici, Little Einsteins!\
275	Leo: L'avventura\
276	Quincy and Annie: Ti aspetta insieme a noi\
277	All: Ti emozionerai, Little Einsteins!\
278	TruckDriversGearChange\
279	Leo: Studiare geografia così e una magia\
280	All: Quanti per musei, tutti per noi!\
281	Leo: Ora vai, in rotta per shanghai\
282	All: Ti divertirai\
283	All: Little Einsteins!''"
284	[[/note]]
285	* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': In "Elementary School Musical", "You Gotta Do What You Gotta Do" starts off as a BeYourself song as Stan, Kyle, Cartman, and Kenny sing about how it doesn't matter what other people think as long as you're staying true to yourself. Over the course of the song, the moral slowly breaks apart.
286	::First chorus
287	-->''You gotta do what you wanna do!\
288	Even if other people don't really want you to!''
289	::Second chorus
290	-->''Do what you wanna do!\
291	Just make sure that what you're doing is what's cool and popular with everyone else!''
292	::Third chorus
293	-->''Do what you wanna do!\
294	As long as what you wanna do is what everybody wants you to!''
295	[[/folder]]

Context Main / ChangingChorus