50 Introspective Nine Inch Nails Lyrics to Use as Photo Captions
Industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails have been making music since 1988, recognized for their darkly complex sounds and intensely emotional storytelling.
Helmed by Trent Reznor, with collaborator Atticus Ross joining the band in 2016, the group is known for its unfiltered innovation and pushing of boundaries. In fact, earlier this month, they released their first music video in five years for the lead single of TRON: Ares (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack), for which they wrote the score.
This month, we also got the news that the group will be performing at Coachella in 2026 as "Nine Inch Noize," featuring electric artist Alexander Ridha as Boys Noize. In anticipation of both massive weekends, we've gathered 50 of the group's most memorable lyrics of all time as captions.
For when no one can strip you of your freedom:
"No, you can't take it, no, you can't take it, no, you can't take that away from me."
-"Head Like a Hole"
For when the conflict between friends gets messy:
"You had all of them on your side, didn't you? Didn't you?"
-"Ruiner"
For appreciating the life you've built:
"The best thing about life is knowing you put it together."
-"A Warm Place"
For when everything falls apart:
"I built it up, now I take it apart. Climbed up real high, now fall down real far."
-"Wish"
For dreaming the days away:
"I stay inside my bed. I have lived so many lives all in my head."
-"I Do Not Want This"
For when they refuse to see the truth:
"He sewed his eyes shut because he is afraid to see."
-"Heresy"
For having one place you feel isolated and safe:
"I just want something I can never have."
-"Something Damaged"
For considering a fresh start:
"If I could start again, a million miles away, I would keep myself. I would find a way."
-"Hurt"
(Photo credit: John Crawford)
For appreciating a bond that will never be broken:
"You and me, we're in this together now."
-"We're in This Together"
For becoming someone who others might not recognize:
"The me that you know, he doesn't come around much. That part of me isn't here anymore."
-"The Becoming"
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For reaching a point of no return:
"I want to but I can't turn back, but I want to, but I can't turn back."
-"Wish"
For knowing your desires are out of reach:
"I just want something I can never have."
-"Something I Can Never Have"
For when your true feelings don't match your exterior:
"But inside your heart, it is black and it's hollow and it's cold."
-"The Hand That Feeds"
For going silent:
"I think I used to have a voice. Now I never make a sound."
-"Every Day Is Exactly the Same"
For when someone has changed but you're still exactly the same:
"You are someone else. I am still right here."
-"Hurt"
For when you've changed and evolved together:
"All that we were is gone, we have to hold on."
-"We're in This Together"
For when someone's plans to bring you down have failed:
"You didn't hurt me, nothing can stop me now."
-"Ruiner"
For embracing the fact that people might think you're "too much":
"Did it fix what was wrong with you? Are you less than?"
-"Less Than"
For challenging unfair systems:
"Are you brave enough to see? Do you wanna change it?"
-"The Hand That Feeds"
For feeling malleable yet fragile:
"And I'm made of clay. I fear I'm the only one who thinks this way."
-"I Do Not Want This"
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For vowing to protect someone:
"I won't let you fall apart."
-"The Fragile"
For when the relationship falls apart:
"Wish there was something real, wish there was something true."
-"Wish"
For committing to forever:
"If the world should break in two, until the very end of me, until the very end of you."
-"We're in This Together"
For no longer being able to remain oblivious to the truth:
"I don't want to listen, but it's all too clear."
-"The Becoming"
For failing to be like your idol:
"So impressed with all you do. Tried so hard to be like you."
-"Something Damaged"
For when life hands you lemons:
"I do not want this."
-"I Do Not Want This"
For not being sure who you are anymore:
"I'm becoming less defined as days go by, fading away and well, you might say I'm losing focus."
-"Only"
For when the passage of time numbs the pain:
"Beneath the stains of time the feelings disappear."
-"Hurt"
For feeling like you're caught in a time loop:
"I believe I can see the future 'cause I repeat the same routine."
-"Every Day Is Exactly the Same"
For knowing you've broken someone's heart:
"I still recall the taste of your tears. Echoing your voice just like the ringing in my ears."
-"Something I Can Never Have"
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For questioning everything:
"What if everything around you isn't quite as it seems?"
-"Right Where It Belongs"
For understanding the role you play in your own destiny:
"Watching fate as it flows down the path we have chose."
-"We're in This Together"
For realizing you can't live forever:
"This is the first day of my last days."
-"Wish"
For the struggle that can be life:
"Well, you know how this world can beat you down."
-"I Do Not Want This"
For when your mind is somewhere else entirely:
"Focus? We didn't even notice."
-"Less Than"
For realizing a relationship is toxic:
"I drag you down, I use you up. Mr. Self Destruct."
-"Mr. Self Destruct"
For confirming and doing what's expected of you:
"You're keeping in step in the line. Got your chin held high and you feel just fine."
-"The Hand That Feeds"
For recognizing all of your own lies:
"Sometimes I think I can see right through myself."
-"Only"
For suffering loss:
"Everyone I know goes away in the end."
-"Hurt"
For wondering why life has treated you this way:
"Why are you doing this to me? Am I not living up to what I'm supposed to be?"
-"Terrible Lie"
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For the one who adds beauty and importance to your world:
"Why are you doing this to me? Am I not living up to what I'm supposed to be?"
-"The Fragile"
For undergoing a transformation:
"I'm stuck in this dream. It's changing me, I am becoming."
-"The Becoming"
For feeling dejected:
"Broken, bruised, forgotten, sore."
-"Something Damaged"
For knowing there's no such thing as rock bottom:
"I now know the depths I reach are limitless."
-"Reptile"
For feeling a little greedy:
"I want a little bit. I want a piece of it."
-"March of the Pigs"
For when everyone's wrong about your true emotions:
"Don't you tell me how I feel. You don't know just how I feel."
-"I Do Not Want This"
For when becoming indifferent sets you free:
"Nothing can stop me now, 'cause I don't care anymore."
-"Piggy"
For when someone still appears in your dreams:
"My favorite dreams of you still wash ashore, scraping through my head 'til I don't wanna sleep anymore."
-"Something I Can Never Have"
For feeling ordered around by your inner voice:
"I am the voice inside your head (and I control you)."
-"Mr. Self Destruct"
For no longer recognizing yourself:
"What have I become? My sweetest friend."
-"Hurt"
For even more lyrical captioning inspiration, click HERE to check out our favorite Turnstile lines to try on.