His lyrics were often about small town life and the average person. Songs like, Runnin Down a Dream, You Don’t Know How It Feels, and Mary Jane’s Last Dance were about the anxieties people feel and their desire to escape or break out, to make a new life for themselves. His voice also reflected his childhood in Florida: his sang in his southern accent, what we sometimes call a southern drawl. A lot of people who grow up with this accent work hard later in life to neutralize it, especially when on TV or in music—but Tom Petty kept his southern accent in his singing. It was part of his authenticity.