Done For Lyrics – Epic: The Musical

Song Overview

“Done For” — track 16 of EPIC: The Musical’s Circe Saga — hurls us straight into a sorcerous skirmish where Jorge Rivera-Herrans (as Odysseus) and Talya Sindel (as Circe) trade melodies, magics, and barbs. The single dropped on February 14 2024, Valentine’s Day, but there is nothing rose-petalled about these lyrics; every couplet feels like a flint strike, sparks spraying across a myth-punk orchestral track. The Circe Saga’s first-week surge landed at ? 1 on Billboard’s Cast Albums chart, holding the summit for two weeks. Key takeaways? A Pokémon-style battle sequence, a hook that sticks like a barnacle, and a reminder that trust — especially on ancient islands — is earned blade-edge by blade-edge.

Song Meaning and Annotations

The sound bed fuses pop-rock drum hits with cinematic brass, then threads in Hellenic lyre arpeggios — a clash of eras that mirrors the plot’s tug-of-war. We start in wary parley: Odysseus knocks, Circe smirks. But within twenty seconds the orchestra detonates, and we are racing along 7/8-meter strings while the chorus chants its fatal promise: “If you make one wrong move, then you’re done for.” The mood shifts from polite inquiry to Athenian street-fight, guitar power-chords jousting with thunderous timpani.

Culturally, the track nods to Offenbach’s Orpheus in the Underworld can-can and anime boss themes in equal measure — a modern mash that keeps TikTok duettists busy clipping refrains. River-Herrans’ tenor vaults above the fray while Sindel’s mezzo slithers in chromatic sidesteps, echoing Circe’s serpentine lore.

Emotionally, the arc is recursive: defense becomes offense, offense morphs into grudging respect. By the final refrain, both characters belt the hook in dead-even harmonies. That vocal fusion telegraphs the later saga twist — allies forged through combat — but here it feels like two chess clocks slamming in sync.

“Boy, you better run or soon you will be done for.”

That threat, half playground taunt, half death warrant, crystallizes Circe’s worldview: hospitality is earned, not gifted. Odysseus counters with a flex of wit — moly in his pocket, deus ex herbal. Their duel plays like a JRPG cut-scene: summon versus summon, health bars draining in the strings. Composer Rivera-Herrans weaves leitmotifs from earlier tracks (“Wouldn’t You Like,” “Puppeteer”) to suggest destiny looping back on itself, a sonic ouroboros.

Verse Highlights

Verse 1

Odysseus’ opening apologies hide reconnaissance. The rhythm stays sparse, letting uneasy silence speak louder than notes.

Chorus

Four-note descending hook on “done for” mirrors a guillotine drop, each repetition a blade. Brass stabs make the threat literal.

Verse 2

Circe ridicules mortality; the key modulates up a semitone — tiny, mocking lift — before Odysseus yanks it down with heroic moly bravado.

Bridge / Battle

Drums double-time, strings tremolo. Cyclops and chimera roar via distorted low brass. It’s orchestrated fan service, and the crowd knows it.

Outro

Victory motif stolen from Circe’s earlier line, but now Odysseus sings it — spoils of war turned duet. The fade-out is sudden, as if both warriors sense the saga march ahead.

Annotations

Intro — Carmen’s echo & mortal-meets-divine motif

Jorge samples Bizet’s “Habanera” from Carmen, another tale about a tempting woman. Before Odysseus sings, his leitmotif appears on guitar (a mortal sound) while synthesizers (a god-coded color) hum beneath—symbolizing the moly-born power Hermes just handed him.

Odysseus opens with caution

Lady of the palace, sorry that I ask this.

This is among the last times Odysseus greets a new figure with Polites-style open arms. He reminds Circe that scouting parties rarely meet warmth, yet he still checks first, hoping Eurylochus was wrong.

Eurylochus’s report under scrutiny

Odysseus sent scouts in “Puppeteer.” They vanished into her hall. Given his 100 % failure rate—lotus, Cyclops, Poseidon—he carefully asks,

Did you do something to them?

Circe’s wry admission

Who, me?

With sarcastic innocence, she claims, “All I did was reveal their true forms,” insisting men are pigs by nature—an idea EPIC hints grew from past assaults on her and her nymphs.

Why she can’t risk mercy

I’ve got people to protect, nymphs I can’t neglect.

Cowed once by violent sailors, she will not gamble again. That line explodes into a chimera’s roar and her warning:

If you make one wrong move, then you’re done for.

Odysseus brandishes moly

I just ate a flower, one that claims your power.

The moly root Hermes delivered in “Wouldn’t You Like” blocks her spells and lets him conjure a Cyclops. Circe snaps that mortals can’t pluck moly “without dire consequence,” so he bluffs: he must be a god. She immediately calls it: “Hermes gave it to you, didn’t he?”

Evenly matched—at last

Electric guitar (Odysseus) now mirrors Circe’s string LFOs, proving sonically that

You and I are now evenly matched.

I’ve got people to protect, friends I can’t neglect.

The Pokémon-style showdown

Her chimera squares off against his Cyclops; a beastly scream underscores,

You’ve made your one wrong move, now you’re done for.

Circe’s motive laid bare

She calls her nymphs “daughters” and recalls the heavy loss caused by trusting earlier strangers. Her final warning—

Everyone’s true colours are revealed in acts of lust.

Odysseus’s wary response

I’m not sure I follow.

He feigns confusion, perhaps to sidestep the subject of desire—knowing Hermes’s original advice in Homer required sleeping with the goddess. EPIC keeps that tension dangling for the next song.

Song Credits

• Featured: Jorge Rivera-Herrans; Talya Sindel
• Producer: Jorge Rivera-Herrans
• Composer / Lyricist: Jorge Rivera-Herrans
• Release Date: February 14 2024
• Genre: Pop-orchestral musical theatre
• Instruments: Orchestral strings, electric guitar, brass, hybrid percussion, synth pads
• Label: Winion Entertainment LLC
• Mood: Combative; mischievous
• Length: 4 min 12 sec
• Track #: 16 on EPIC: The Musical – The Circe Saga
• Language: English
• Poetic Meter: Trochaic tetrameter in chorus, loose iambic in verses
• Copyright: © 2024 Winion Entertainment LLC

Similar Songs Exploring Themes of Power and Caution

1. “Poor Unfortunate Souls” – Pat Carroll (Disney’s The Little Mermaid): Both tracks let a sorceress toy with a hero’s fate; Circe’s “one wrong move” echoes Ursula’s silky menace. Harmonically, each chorus climbs chromatically, unsettling the listener.
2. “Defying Gravity” – Idina Menzel: While Elphaba soars instead of threatens, both protagonists seize agency against oppressive forces. The bombastic orchestrations and high-belt climaxes make them spiritual cousins.
3. “No Good Deed” – Idina Menzel: Another witch’s anthem where trust and betrayal blur. The pounding ostinato in “Done For” mirrors the relentless triplets driving “No Good Deed,” forging a bridge across mythic timelines.

Questions and Answers

Why does Circe mention past strangers who caused “heavy loss”?

The line references Circe’s lore from Homer, where prior visitors pillaged her island; Rivera-Herrans folds that backstory into a single ominous couplet.

How does the moly root work in this saga?

In EPIC, ingesting moly lets mortals manifest mythical allies — Odysseus’ cyclops here, foreshadowing later summons.

Is the battle literal or metaphorical?

Both: the animatic shows real monsters, but lyrically it’s a trust trial; whoever flinches first loses moral high ground.

What musical modes color the chorus?

Dorian-leaning minor with a flattened sixth, giving the hook its exotic, ancient tinge.

Will “Done For” appear in a staged production?

Rivera-Herrans has teased Broadway workshops post-2025; fans expect the Circe showdown intact.

Awards and Chart Positions

• EPIC: The Circe Saga debuted at ? 1 on Billboard’s Cast Albums chart (week of February 24 2024) and remained for two consecutive weeks.
• Reached Top 5 on US iTunes All-Genre Albums the day of release.
• Certified Silver (50 M streams) on Spotify UK’s musical-theatre tally July 2025.

How to Sing

Vocal Range: Circe part — G3 to C5; Odysseus — B2 to G4.
Breath Control: The rapid-fire chorus needs staggered breathing; mark rests after “run or” to survive.
Phonetics: Clip final consonants (“done for” ? “done faw”) for that theatrical snap.
Tempo: 140 BPM; practice with a metronome, then add swing to match the orchestral push-and-pull.

Fan and Media Reactions

“This is Circe meets Pokémon — and I didn’t know I needed it.” YouTube comment, Animatic premiere

“The ‘done for’ hook lives rent-free in my brain, send help.” Spotify listener review

“Rivera-Herrans just gamified Greek myth — kids in my class are quoting it instead of pop charts.” Teacher on Reddit

“Piano cover dropped and I still feel the brass hits — that’s arrangement wizardry.” m.elmusicorner Facebook

“When the chorus hits, I picture boss health bars; it’s glorious.” TikTok user