Make It Up As I Go

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"Make It Up As I Go" is the eleventh song off of Mike Shinoda's debut studio album, Post Traumatic. The song features guest vocals from K.Flay.

Background

"Make It Up As I Go" started during the One More Light writing sessions, but the track was ultimately scrapped since Mike and Brad felt the song simply wasn't turning out well. When he was going through old tracks during the writing of Post Traumatic, however, Mike felt that the theme of the song fit what he was going for on the record, so he rewrote it and included it on the album.^[1]

Mike told Ultimate Guitar, "The stuff from Post Traumatic, I did 90 percent of it myself and I did most of that at my house. I did a few things at a couple other studios and I plucked a few things that were unfinished demos or sketches from other sessions I had worked on. "Make It Up As We Go" was a song we started at the very end of the One More Light sessions with me, K. Flay and Brad [Delson]. All it was was a chorus and the rest of this demo track was terrible. I listened to it while I was making Post Traumatic and realized the theme of that song was central to the album. It was really where my head was at at that point in the record."^[2]

In a livestream on April 29, 2020, Mike listed "Make It Up As I Go" as one of his favorite tracks on the album, explaining that its theme of not really having an end destination in mind and just cruising along still really resonates with him.

Versions

Note: Only the date of the very first release of each version is listed.

Studio

Title	Album	Length	Recorded	Released	Notes
Make It Up As I Go	Post Traumatic	3:30	2017-2018	June 15, 2018	Features vocals by K.Flay
Make It Up As I Go	Post Traumatic (Clean)	3:30	2017-2018	June 15, 2018	Censored. Worldwide release on October 31, 2018.^[3]
Make It Up As I Go	Post Traumatic - Instrumentals	3:29	2017-2018		Official instrumental version.

Live

Title	Album	Length	Recorded	Released	Notes
Make It Up As I Go (Live In Moscow, 2018)	Soundcheck Session: Live In Moscow	4:54	September 1, 2018	November 15, 2018	Video only.

Live

"Make It Up As I Go" was debuted live at Mike's performance at Amoeba Records. K.Flay joined Mike for the song. She also joined Mike for the song at the KROQ AAC performance. For most of the west coast leg of the Monster Energy Outbreak Tour, Linkin Park bandmate Phoenix would join Mike and the band for the song. "Make It Up As I Go" was one of the few songs to be performed at every full solo show Mike played since its debut.

Live Guests

Last Updated: January 12, 2020

K.Flay
Phoenix (Linkin Park)

Personnel

Written by Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, Kristine Flaherty
Produced by Mike Shinoda
Vocals by Mike Shinoda, Kristine Flaherty
Mixed by Manny Marroquin
Mastered by Michelle Mancini

Lyrics

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I keep on running backwards
I keep on losing faith
I thought I had the answers
I thought I knew the way
My brother said be patient
My mother held my hand
Don't know what I'm chasing
Don't know who I am

Woke up this morning holdin' my head
Thinkin' last night is one of regret
Washin' off the bad decisions, the blurry vision
The clues that I'm still a mess
Spittin' out the taste I have in my mouth
Knowin' what this all is really about
Knowin' there's an explanation, an expiration
I gotta figure shit out

And they're askin' me if I can see
The darkness down below
And I know it's true, I say I do
And half the time I don't
Maybe I can't make what it may take
To leave this thing behind
But I shut my eyes and cross each line
And every time

I keep on running backwards
I keep on losing faith
I thought I had the answers
I thought I knew the way
My brother said be patient
My mother held my hand
I don't know what I'm chasing
I don't know who I am

Waking in the dead of night, I can't sleep
Sleeping in the light of day for like weeks
Reality was out of focus, I could be hopeless
Instead I gritted my teeth
I didn't have the patience left to explain
Didn't wanna wake when nobody came
I know the path I had's uneven, but while I'm breathing
I have to make my own lane

And they're askin' me if I can see
The darkness down below
And I know it's true, I say I do
And half the time I don't
Maybe I can't make what it may take
To leave this thing behind
But I shut my eyes and cross each line
And every time

I keep on running backwards
I keep on losing faith
I thought I had the answers
I thought I knew the way
My brother said be patient
My mother held my hand
I don't know what I'm chasing
I don't know who I am

So, I make it up as I go
I make it up as I go
So, I make it up as I go
I make it up as I go, as I go

I keep on running backwards
I keep on losing faith
I thought I had the answers
I thought I knew the way

My brother said be patient
My mother held my hand
I don't know what I'm chasing
Don't know who I am

So, I make it up as I go
I make it up as I go
So, I make it up as I go
I make it up as I go, as I go