singing the blues
Mourning out loud
Singing the blues means expressing sadness, complaint, or self-pity—from the blues as a musical genre built on themes of hardship and sorrow.
Someone singing the blues is lamenting their troubles, often at length: He's been singing the blues about his job ever since they passed him over for promotion.
The phrase can be sympathetic or dismissive depending on tone.
- soulInnermost animating essence
- slideSmooth continuous movement
- sorrowDeep emotional distress
- Great MigrationVast collective relocation
- African American heritageAncestral and cultural background of Black Americans
call-and-response · moan · yearning · heartbreak · lonely nights · sad song · ache · jazz · slavery · Jim Crow era · hard times · down and out · cotton fields · gospel · oral tradition · resilience · catharsis · lamentation
singing the blueson cloud nine
Extremely elated state
over the moon · walking on air · on top of the world · in seventh heaven · happy as a clam
singing the bluesliving the dream
Achieving one's aspirations
riding high · sitting pretty · hitting the jackpot · coming up roses · on a roll
singing the bluescelebrating
Observing with festivity
rejoicing · jumping for joy · kicking up one's heels · counting one's blessings · crowing
sing, singing, sings, singer, singers, songs, songster, singalong, blue