The Raw, Intimate Sound of Michael Marcagi’s Viral Smash

In late 2023, the yearning strains of a solitary acoustic guitar drifted across TikTok, soon echoed by millions of spellbound listeners.

The melody came from Scared to Start by Michael Marcagi, a young Cincinnati singer-songwriter who had captured a pervasive cultural mood with his folk-tinged clarion call to embrace life’s uncertainties.

Produced by David Baron (The Lumineers, Jade Bird) and co-written with Marcagi’s former bandmate Andrew “AJ” Yorio, Scared to Start arrived as the lead single for Michael Marcagi’s debut EP, American Romance.

But even before its official release in February 2024, this haunting yet defiant anthem was already a ubiquitous hit, garnering a lot of attention.

The Folk-Fueled, TikTok-Approved Sound of Romance

Characterised by its warm folk sonics and modern flourishes, Scared to Start lives at the intersection of vintage Americana and Gen Z wanderlust.

Bright acoustic guitars blend with a tambourine-driven beat as Michael Marcagi’s plaintive vocals reach a leonine roar, uplifted by background vocals from Yorio and Jon Moon. Yorio even contributed mandolin, adding an organic, earthy flair.

The song’s unforgettable melody and rawboned poetry immediately resonated, sparking over 70,000 TikTok videos set to its impassioned lyrics that urge listeners to “run away and live out of cars and bars.”

This viral success marked a full-circle moment for Michael Marcagi, who spent years fronting Cincinnati alt-rock band The Heavy Hours before embracing his folksier impulses as a solo act.

Lyrics of Scared to Start Light a Spark

Scared to Start is an anthem of self-actualization and rebirth. The song’s narrative is a plea to a young woman trapped by inertia and the fear of change, reassuring her, “And if that’s wrong, let’s make it right / And if you leave, just give me one more night / ‘Cause there’s no one that you’ll find that’s quite like me.”

But a pivotal emotional shift occurs when she boldly climbs into his car, ready to pursue adventure despite her inner trepidations.

As Michael Marcagi explained in the lyrics he co-wrote with Yorio, “It’s about taking the risks and putting yourself out of your comfort zone, regardless of what the rest of the world has to say.”

In the chorus, her determination reaches its apex:

“Don’t you wait to try it? Are you scared to find it? And do you wanna take my broken heart? Are you scared to start?”

A Countercultural Anthem for Uncertain Times

Part of Scared to Start’s ubiquitous resonance lies in its fantasy of escaping the turbulence of modern life for the simplicity of the open road.

This desire for rebirth and liberation also inspired American Romance’s pensive lead single, “The Other Side,” which Michael Marcagi said stemmed from “feeling completely stuck and alone” during the pandemic.

“I wanted to be on ‘The Other Side’ of this. I wanted to be anywhere else but here,” he revealed.

With its rousing gang vocals and spirit of youthful defiance, Scared to Start has quickly become 2024’s defining anti-establishment anthem—a folk-punk antidote to cynicism and stasis, daring its listeners to leave their complacency behind.

Its success has cemented Michael Marcagi as a major new voice, blending poetic heft with raw vitality.

So get ready to “let’s burn out, just as long as we burn bright,” to the sound of Scared to Start.

Listen to the lyrics video that has amassed over 3.1 million views, capturing the wanderlust of Marcagi’s words.

Stream this Billboard-charting smash hit, exhorting you to embrace new horizons. After all, in the end, are you scared to start?

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Michael Macaragi Scared to Start Lyrics

Verse 1
She’s wearing an old dress, walking it out
Waiting for someone to turn her around
But she won’t believe you
When you fall down on your knees
She fell asleep listening to my friends
Talking on and on about how the world ends
Then she wakes up
And climbs in my front seat

Chorus
And she said
“Don’t you wait to try it
Are you scared to find it?
And do you wanna take my broken heart?
Are you scared to start?”

Verse 2
Let’s lay in the dead grass, stare at the stars
Run away and live out of cars and bars
Let’s just leave here
‘Cause there’s nothing left to see
And if that’s wrong, let’s make it right
And if you leave, just give me one more night
‘Cause there’s no one
That you’ll find that’s quite like me

Chorus
And she said
“Don’t you wait to try it
Are you scared to find it?
And do you wanna take my broken heart?
Are you scared to start?”

Bridge
You don’t need the paycheck, don’t need the rent
You can take it all ’cause it’s already spent
We can burn out, just as long as we burn bright

Chorus
And she said
“Don’t you wait to try it
Are you scared to find it?
And do you wanna take my broken heart?
Will you ever heal from all these scars?
Did you ever take it all so far?
Are you scared to start?”