Delia’s TED Talk Lyrics - Beetlejuice

Song Overview

Review and Highlights

Quick summary

1. Cut Delia number from early development of Beetlejuice, preserved on Eddie Perfect’s 24-track demo compilation Beetlejuice - The Demos The Demos The Demos (digital release October 30, 2020).
2. Performed and produced by Eddie Perfect for the demo set, issued by Ghostlight Records.
3. Functions as a Delia-to-Lydia bridge: Delia drops the life-coach mask and tells a mortifying story that connects directly to Lydia’s grief.
4. Runtime about 2:42; the album release arrived alongside a track-by-track commentary rollout and streaming availability.

Creation History

As the show evolved, Perfect generated multiple scenes to humanize Delia. This 2015 draft plants her on a conference stage, then lets the TED-style veneer collapse into a panic spiral and a confession about how Charles steadied her. The number was later replaced in favor of the sharper Delia-Lydia comic foil that audiences know, but Perfect preserved it in his 2020 demo album and discussed the cut in official companion materials.

Highlights

It starts as patter, swerves into spoken self-own, then blooms into a plainspoken lullaby of solidarity. The best line might be the smallest: “I was once like you.” No mysticism, no mantras - just a grown-up outing her own fear. That honesty reframes Delia not as a punchline, but as someone who learned to steady herself the hard way.

Song Meaning and Annotations

Plot

Delia begins a motivational talk, bungles it, melts down, and admits she used to be where Lydia is. She reveals that Charles - Lydia’s father - recognized her sadness and helped her through it. The scene’s purpose is simple and necessary: give Delia and Lydia a real emotional hand-off.

Song Meaning

Under the jokes sits a thesis about failure and care. Delia’s stage fright turns into a confession that models vulnerability for Lydia. The takeaway is not “think positive” - it is “I know that feeling, and you’re not alone.” In early drafts this was a potential pivot from brittle levity to genuine alliance, later streamlined into the version of Delia the production kept.

Close reading

“Do you ever feel the universe is cold and lonely?”

Opens like a wellness spiel, but the language is too stark for snake-oil. The line sets up Delia’s fake-it-till-you-break-it facade.

“This is the part where I screwed up my TED Talk”

The mask drops. The lyric literalizes stage fright, puncturing Delia’s self-help posture with specific embarrassment - dropped notes, audible laughter, a 40-minute cry.

“See, I was just like you, Lydia”

Direct address matters here. The song stops performing to the crowd and turns to the one kid who needs to hear it.

“That person was your dad”

Charles becomes the hinge. It folds Lydia back toward the living - the show’s larger arc at this beat.

Style, production, instrumentation

Demo-clean and text-first. Steady mid-tempo groove, keys and light rhythm support, with spoken interjections intact. Perfect sings every role, as he does across the compilation, which keeps the focus on writing and placement rather than vocal showcase.

Key Facts

• Artist: Eddie Perfect
• Featured: none - composer performs the demo
• Composer: Eddie Perfect
• Producer: Eddie Perfect
• Release Date: October 30, 2020
• Genre: Musical theatre demo
• Instruments: Keys, bass, light percussion, multitracked vocals
• Label: Ghostlight Records
• Mood: Self-deprecating, candid, consoling
• Length: 2:42
• Track #: 8 on the demo album
• Language: English
• Album: Beetlejuice - The Demos The Demos The Demos
• Music style: Patter-to-ballad hybrid with spoken asides
• Poetic meter: Conversational free verse into rhymed refrains

Canonical Entities & Relations

Questions and Answers

Where did this sit in the show’s early structure?

In the Delia-Lydia bonding slot that later tilted toward a lighter comic scene - this draft played the moment earnestly.

Was it ever recorded by the Broadway cast?

No - the surviving release is the composer’s own demo vocal.

Why was it cut?

As the creative team honed tone and pace, they favored other Delia material that kept momentum while letting Lydia’s arc resolve elsewhere.

How can I hear it now?

It is available on major streaming platforms as part of the demo album, and accompanied online by official commentary from Perfect.

Does the demo album include only piano sketches?

No - many tracks are fully produced, with layered vocals and rhythm beds, so you hear structure and feel.

Any notable covers or remixes?

None in commercial release - it is a deep-cut document of process rather than a single.

What does this number add to Delia’s character?

It reframes her as someone who learned empathy through failure, which softens later sparring with Lydia.

Additional Info

Ghostlight announced the compilation as a Halloween-timed digital drop, a behind-the-scenes window built from demos recorded between 2014 and 2019. Trade outlets covered the release as a rare chance to hear the musical’s alternate paths, with Perfect’s commentary contextualizing what stayed and what fell away. According to Playbill, the set was produced by Perfect and made available for streaming and purchase the same day; BroadwayWorld ran the label’s announcement the day prior. The Second Disc noted that the tracks were fully arranged rather than bare sketches, and pointed to a companion podcast episode where Perfect dug into choices and chronology.

Sources: Playbill, BroadwayWorld, TheaterMania, Ghostlight Records, Apple Music, Spotify, SoundCloud, The Second Disc.