“100% Endurance” by Yard Act
Dad’s Song of the Day #34, Oct. 2, 2025
A couple of weeks ago, I committed to looking for new(ish) music, and boy, did I ever hit the jackpot with this. I heard it on a podcast yesterday and have been listening to and thinking about it almost continuously.
I don’t know if Yard Act is super well-known or not (this song has 7 million plays, so they’re obviously not totally unknown), but I think “100% Endurance” deserves a lot of attention as philosophical thought.
It is a rare song about hope and promise in an age of persistent nihilism. I don’t often pay too much attention to lyrics, but for me, these are so thought-provoking and enlightening. Everyone--even aliens from outer space--asks themselves the same existential questions: Why are we here? What’s the point of it all?
So, Yard Act suggests that:
“It is (pointless) and that’s beautiful;
I find it humbling, sincerely.
And when you’re gone;
It brings me peace of mind that this will all just carry on,
With someone else;
With someone new.
No need to be blue.”
The video for this features David Thewlis a great British actor (who you guys might remember as Professor Lupin in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban)...and I think it’s a wonderful video that illustrates the optimistic, life-affirming message of the song.
“It’s all hippy bullshit, but it’s true.”