Magic Marker

Monsters of Folk are an alternative rock band comprising of Jim James of My Morning Jacket, Conor Oberst and Mike Mogis of Bright Eyes, and indie singer-songwriter M. Ward. This song has lyrics that reference the famous Tootsie Pops ad campaign where a boy asks how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop. Mogis explained to Express Night Out: "I know [Jim] talked about this and I cant quite remember, so I don't want to put words in his mouth, but I think it dealt with a human condition kind of thing, getting to the heart of something basically. It has this kind of similar sentiment to some of the other songs that deal with a question and the human condition, like this constant need for things and yearning and searching for stuff. And the Tootsie Pop reference is one of those things: getting to the prize, what do you have to do to get to that point."