Priscilla Ahn

Fine on the Outside is the theme song of the film When Marnie Was There. The song was written and sung by Priscilla Ahn.

Lyrics

 * I never had that many friends growing up
 * So I learned to be okay with just me
 * Just me, just me, just me


 * And I'll be fine on the outside


 * I like to eat in school by myself anyway
 * So I'll just stay right here
 * Right here, right here, right here


 * And I'll be fine on the outside


 * So I just sit in my room
 * After hours with the moon
 * And think of who knows my name
 * Would you cry if I died?
 * Would you remember my face?


 * So I left home
 * I packed up and I moved far away
 * From my past one day
 * And I laughed
 * I laughed, I laughed, I laughed


 * I sound fine on the outside


 * Oh oh oh [4x]
 * Oh oh oh


 * Sometimes I feel lost sometimes I'm confused
 * Sometimes I find that I'm not alright
 * And I cry, and I cry, and I cry


 * Oh oh oh [4x]
 * Oh oh oh


 * So I just sit in my room
 * After hours with the moon
 * And think of who knows my name
 * Would you cry if I died?
 * Would you remember my face?

Background
Priscilla Ahn, in common with the protagonist, saw herself as friendless and alone, and turned to music and other interests as a way to compensate. "...would literally sit on my bed and look out the window at night at the moon, and wonder if I was loved... if anyone would miss me if I was gone." This led her to writing "Fine on the Outside" in 2005, but she had never released it due to the lyrics being too personal, and because she didn't want to have to change the song in any way to make it fit in with her other albums. A big fan of Ghibli, she read the original novel When Marnie Was There after the announcement they were working on a movie adaptation, saw herself in Anna, and eventually decided to submit the song to Ghibli. The movie's producer Yoshiaki Nishimura contacted her soon afterwards saying how much he loved the song, and it was later officially chosen as the theme song.

Release
It was released in Japan as a CD single and a digital single on 2 July 2014.