Alright, here we go One, two, ready, go Hmmmm Hmmmm Hmmmm And I try, and I try, and I try Hmmmm Place my faith Place my faith in you Place my faith Place my faith in you Place, place, place Place my faith in you I've been looking for myself these days Mighta lost my soul, might've lost my way, yeah yeah I've been looking for myself these days Mighta lost my soul, might've lost my way, yeah yeah I've been looking for myself these days Mighta lost my soul, might've lost my way, yeah yeah I've been looking for myself these days Mighta lost my soul, might've lost my way, yeah yeah

Now how you lie in the life that you livin' How you die in the life you livin' Take a ride, feel the vibe in your mind and just listen You could ride out of time in a minute Now how you lie in the life that you livin' How you die in the life you livin' Take a ride, feel the vibe in your mind and just listen You could ride out of time in a minute Now how you lie in the life that you livin' Now how you die in the life you livin', see I'm just floatin' On this ride I was given, Now how you cry when it's time for forgiveness, I told 'em wake up Death don't got no rollover minutes, and life don't got no respawns So I'm callin' up my mama, yeah I'm dialin' the digits Sittin' patient waiting for her to respond It's really crazy how it is see Doin' eighty in a sixty Know my family really miss me Got me caught up in the city Now we all up in the drama Feel like I'm on my lonesome The more I try to solve it The more I have a problem Wait up Told em pick they mind and they face up See we bruise, but my people don't need makeup You see we strong, nothing's ever gonna break us They say it's wrong when we tell 'em celebrate love Love, love, love, love's what it is I love my mom, love my pops, love the job, and the kids And when I'm on, promise give back where I live So my spirit live on when I'm gone with the wind Now how you lie in the life that you livin' How you die in the life you livin' Take a ride, feel the vibe in your mind and just listen You could ride out of time in a minute Now how you lie in the life that you livin' How you die in the life you livin' Take a ride, feel the vibe in your mind and just listen You could ride out of time in a minute We, never knowing the continuing progression of events Called seconds, called minutes, called hours, called time Looking to alter it through ritual, prayer, risk, caution All or nothing, your mother's whispers, Grandma's last words We are changed, counting change, hoping it will change our circumstances What stance will you take, to be unequivocally you Clear from all the lies that you were living Playing all the cards that you've been given Listening to all the songs with intuition Being effective is infectious, so move with your one beat rhythm Let love be that base that gets them We are faced with so much And then some, and then some Creates the agenda to reshape this tunnel forever This forever Crammed into something called hours Called minutes Called seconds Called time

They try to tell us that we ain't our ancestors Treat a protest like a transgression Leave the focus on a Rolex While they gentrifyin' up the whole set No change, rearrange all the packaging No brain, Cobain, just vanity No name, 'less they hoopin', or they trafickin' The way they run this institution, just like an academy, yah Tell me who achieves and tell me who dies? Use the power of the greed to fight with black lives Glorify material and that's why For one pair of two-three's, he get shot with four-fives Oh my, God, it's so, wrong For every blooming flower there's a snake in the garden Oh my, Lord, it's so, wrong The race still enslaved, we just changed the, laws They say the hangman left huh Then why we hangin' ourselves 'ah New age, old debts No change, new slaves, new chains on our necks New chains on our necks yah New chains on our necks yah New age, old debts No change, new slaves, new chains on our necks Blind to a witness, tried and acquitted Take a private eye's vision just to find a sentence They don't want us ownin' businesses, but tell us mind our business We still slaves, Google privatized prison This is Bottom life, bottom line, we can't get our credit up Monetize the culture, dollar signs for America Fair enough, see we only matter when we at the bottom They don't want the power of the Black Dollar Tell us to go back home, or back on leashes They don't want black homes or black-owned regions We back up our backbone, get back where we even and Demand where we stand by the man as an equal I ain't Talkin' bout some random violence Talkin' bout some economics Trickle down effects and Smart investments in ourselves and wallets Uncle Sam, he got his hands in the bag So we should, throw our cash Where Uncle Same can't grab I just wanna make it, I been waitin' all my life Got my patience thin and hangin', I don't wanna waste my time When I make it, I'll be gracious, take my family out the 'Hood The more I chase it, the more I'm slavin', the more I'm tangled in this noose I just wanna be, I just wanna be I just wanna be rich I just want the clothes, I just want the money, I just want all these whips I just want all this ice, and I just want all these chains And I just want all these Nikes, and I can't keep my change I'm living paycheck to paycheck, spending payments on Bapes And blowin' my savings and paper on crates and boxes of, "Made in China" I pay for designer, but I can't payoff my Honda Hollerin' out how I'm slavin' every day for the dolla' I want the Gucci, the Louis, Vendi, the Balenciagas Rockin' the Dolce Gabbana, bought me some Loro Piana Pawn off my Grandma's piano, so I can pay for my iPhone I don't know, I have a problem, probably solve it with Prada Product of wantin' to ball, my idols all had it all So when I get me some cash, I'm going back to the mall Cashout my check and withdraw, watching my checkings dissolve The more they press out our pockets, the more it oppresses us all And I just want the hoes and the cars, I just wanna own me a bar I just wanna Crown and a Porsche, yeah I just wanna round of applause And I don't wanna work me a job, no, I don't wanna punch in a clock No, I don't wanna stir up a pot, and I don't wanna flick these wrists And I just wanna be rich, I just wanna be rich The more I climb out the hole, the farther I fall in the ditch And I just wanna be rich, I just wanna be rich Got all these whips and these chains, don't tell me slaves don't exist

Yo, You see the truth is, had the potential to do this But loose lips, sunk that ship and that movement That ruthless, lookin' for an easy escape plan Self-medication, wait fam What I wouldn't do to wipe clean the slate man But well wishin' only so far it would take him Why you trade one vice for one more, hopin' the piece fit Ain't no secret, you was just the last to see it Down And I'm scared that you lost now It seems that your love for this life got you locked down And I know That you feelin' so hopeless, chainsmokin', lookin' for an outlet to focus To breakthrough, doesn't matter where it gon' take you Time changes but you swear the time, it won't change you And I know Mama told me there'd be times like these Where you can't find peace I know it's hard to see but When it seems that we can't carry on much longer I will, trust you, to guide me When it seems that we can't carry on much longer I will, trust you, to guide me I been wastin' time, my nine-to-five a life of crime Mama cryin' lost her mind when, she heard coppers read my rights While I'm locked inside for forty five For robbin' lives with forty fives She on my side, prayed all the time For, forty days and forty nights And I don't know, I don't know if I am gonna make it But mama put my life inside his hands, I guess I'll take it And I don't know, no, I don't know if I am gonna make it But mama put my life inside his hands, I guess I'll take it When it seems that we can't carry on much longer I will, trust you, to guide me When it seems that we can't carry on much longer I will, trust you, to guide me I don't know, I don't know If I'm gonna I don't know, I don't know If I'm gonna I don't know, I don't know If I'm gonna I don't know, I don't know If I'm gonna I don't know, I don't know If I'm gonna I don't know, I don't know If I'm gonna No, no, no No, no, no No, no, no And I don't know if I'ma make it Mama's prayers ain't enough to stop this achin' I'm tired, of seeing my brothers on the pavement Impatient, contemplatin', lookin' around Like what they sayin', yeah Look at the news they hate us All they do is degrade us If we on TV it's for sports and public shamin' Or comedy I see the irony in making 'em laugh See we just entertainment to the faces facin' the glass Closed caskets, rose petals and baskets Black blood and the sun, grew the roses where you standin' Candlelight vigils, another night, another victim All in a day's work for the federal justice system Just listen As I sit on this bus, headed to prison Wishin', I had somebody to tell me that I was trippin' But I didn't And if they ain't gon' give it, then I'ma get it Always saw me as a thug so I really became a menace Turn these bricks into a business Mama prayin' for my sinnin' It's funny, 'cuz these bricks, the foundation, for my sentence Got me callin' out for help dog They see my color tell me, "Hell nah" Yeah They throw us out by the masses With the roaches and rats and Tell us that nothin's happenin While we die by their hand and When we expose the man They choke us out 'till we gaspin' And I can't breathe, this unforgivable blackness

Yeah, Unforgivable blackness Thunder under yo' black skin Underprivileged masses This life of mine, I'm ostracized Prophecize oppression I will not apologize for the tint of my complexion It's too deep, feel like I'm in the ocean Ooh-wee, no boat, just floatin' Losing my need to breathe, I feel my conscious slippin' focus And my skin not pale enough But my soul ain't black at all Oh my, melanin More lies, more lives Old wives, tellin' it Oh God, Oh I Want it on my own, but I'm stuck between a roadblock Try to go around the zone, they post another roadblock So I take the road I want, I'm caught up with patrol cars Funny how your skin, been conditionin' your role, huh I feel so, so out of place, this world just ain't for me It ain't for me I have got a price to pay and can't afford the fee Afford the fee Mama tells me I'm forgiven by the Lord I'm saved Why after I bow my head do I still feel afraid I heard my mom's cryin' in the other room So I checked on her, I asked her, "why, why you cryin' today?" She told me, "when you go outside, I don't know if you gon' make it" And I told her mama, don't worry Workin', I'm in a hurry Know you raised me with virtue But virtually nobody can hurt me She said watch out for the police They ain't protectin' and servin' And when you lay your head down I pray it's not on a gurney Bodies they lie on the sidewalk No cameras, no angles Outlined with white chalk His head got a halo Now he lie with the angels I just pray you be safe And know this path that you walkin' Was built to lead you astray

Life of American alcoholics Searchin' for the bill that has fallen out of his wallet Steal a Steel Reserve, submerge it within his pocket Kill it on the curb and submerge up within his conscious He, made it up the stairs, grabs the keys and he's fumblin' The forty-sippin', finally hit him, now the man is stumblin' Mumblin' and bumblin' he shuffles into loving sheets And falls asleep Drunken dreams, his sheets to keep him company Pass out, vomit Wake up, vomit Shower Then he go to work Clock a twelve And then he delve Right back to Hell Away from Earth Swervin' his suburban Off some, bourbon he had purchased Person with no purpose Figured life, ain't ever perfect Measures life, if it's worth it Whether he should pull the curtain He been stompin' on the ice and he just finally broke the surface, woah An old soul at crossroad, he's conflicted And all his afflictions synonymous with addiction Yeah, and he standin' at a crossroad Another life, another lost soul And he too proud to ask for help He in a, battle with himself He figured everybody'd lost hope Tired of the strife And how he fightin' all the time And how these vices rule his life but He tryin' But ain't nobody listenin' And ain't no way to fight it He been silenced by addiction Runnin' stop signs like there's no tomorrow Stars align inside a forty bottle Need a shot to feel functional Hit the bar to feel comfortable Like his mind is stuck in drive That mean there's no reversin' Reverse the mind See through his eyes And he's a different person, and personally Burnin' all his bridges in the worst way Waitin' on a bottle Bottoms up, he always thirsty See the pain it'll finish you Pour a cup, drank, in a swimmin' pool It don't matter what he drinkin' Any liquor, anything that'll get him through See his, problems is minuscule But his problems is all he do He only keep it a hundred when he drinkin' a hundred proof Provin' the point As we point out his flaws He point out the fact That he could be on points of the raw So what's the point of it all Canceled appointments, withdraws Hit a fifth after he walked out The point is across Yeah, and he standin' at a crossroad Another life, another lost soul And he too proud to ask for help He in a, battle with himself He figured everybody lost hope Tired of the strife And how he fightin' all the time And how these vices rule his life but He tryin' But ain't nobody listenin' And ain't no way to fight it He been silenced by addiction See I'm tryin', but ain't nobody listenin' I've been Callin' for awhile, but can't nobody hear me And honestly, I've been on autopilot for some miles I've been lookin' my whole life for a reason not to drown You think I don't want your advice Like I wanna have these vices Pops was an alcoholic, I'ma be just like him See I, got some demons And they, ain't gon' let up And I Know how to make it worse more than I can make it better, hey Been looking for all my life Been looking for all my life, oh Been looking for all my life Been looking for all my life, oh I was Raised in a place where the pain never fade And my day's all grey, I ain't never had grace I ain't never been saved, woah Wonder why I don't have faith My father hit the bottle and yo, it don't take a genius To follow, I'm the product of an alcoholic's genes, yeah Whatchu know about love, whatchu know about growing up no hugs You don't know about Pops, wakin' up hittin' shots, throwin' up till there's blood on the rug I tried to run from all my problems, ended on the same road Tried to choose a different path, but yo this route is all I know, woah Been looking for all my life My whole life I been searchin' for a purpose If it's worth it, but I don't know if it's workin' Been looking for all my life, oh Know I gotta problem, and I Really wanna solve it I know it starts with the bottle, woah Been looking for all my life I know I got a higher callin' I'm so tired, always fallin' I'm accustomed to the bottom, hey Been looking for all my life, oh I feel my time about to wind down So I'ma change my life and go to try to put this All my life Been looking for all my life, oh Been looking for all my life Been looking for all my life, oh Been looking for all my life Been looking for all my life, oh Been looking for all my life I Been looking for all my life, oh

Whatever's been on ya mind Lately all I can find Is your quiet disapproval and I I wish that we could rewind To that moment in time When you told me all your feelings and I Feel like we're growin' apart Feel like you over my wrongs Feel like I owe you this song Told ya I'll be home tomorrow And I ain't been home in days You see I'm caught at my job I might be going away And when I'm gone Won't you promise me that you'll always be safe Gotta be strong for your mama Honestly she'll need your strength And don't you worry about me Yeah I'ma be okay I just wanna hear you say That you gon' hold it down for me While I'm sittin' down, stand your ground for me I don't need you to understand Or to comprehend I don't wanna amends I just wanna hear you say That when the world seems heartless Ride on regardless Throughout all the hardships Light through the darkness And when it seems farthest I'm right where your heart is I just wanna hear you say If the world seems heartless Ride on regardless Throughout all the hardships Light through the darkness And when it seems farthest I'm right where your heart is I just wanna hear you say So my boy hold your head high Right now I don't know what I'm gon' do I just wanna hear you say That your life will be alright And you'll be there when I come back for you I just wanna hear you say Never have a grudge or vendetta It wasn't right, but I was tryna make us live better And when you need a hug, remember, you can send a letter I'll read em all, and always send em back, till forever Please understand that I was doing all that I knew how to And your circumstance isn't everything about you I was tryna make fives, tens, twenties Out of, dimes, nickels, pennies And it never really, could amount to The time I'll miss with you I'm servin' time, that misses you I spend my time, just missin' you I grab my thoughts and I write But you could still provide for you I promise, you could make it through And I'll be back 'Cuz time with you is the time of my life I just wanna hear you say That when the world seems heartless Ride on regardless Throughout all the hardships Light through the darkness And when it seems farthest I'm right where your heart is I just wanna hear you say If the world seems heartless Ride on regardless Throughout all the hardships Light through the darkness And when it seems farthest I'm right where your heart is I just wanna hear you say You ain't gotta justify actions Recognize you livin' in madness Never needed mansions I just needed love and affections Wanted to leave me lavish Left me with pain and sadness Now you tellin' me forgive me When I gave you more than any Ain't a heartbreak tragic I don't want your lies I don't want excuses All I want Is for you to apologize For you to apologize For you to apologize For breakin' my heart I don't want your lies I don't want excuses All I want Is for you to apologize For you to apologize For you to apologize For breakin' my heart

Been trapped in a maze and Been patiently waitin' for A day when the rain gon', stop I'm caught in a Matrix plot Been dodgin' the system that tar' That target our pigment and they They harbor the intent That leave us poverty stricken and I I'm caught in a glitch where I Slang rocks to our children on The same block where they picketed fo' The right for our children to go Get an education, schoolin' Now they place us in institutions Pay us for complacency That's why so many players hoopin' And it's like my life don't matter Ended up lookin' up to the skyline And I tried to climb the ladder Ended up goin' down the pipeline Sat in my cell and reflected Picked up my pen and wrote a letter askin' What your purpose is Go and find it Chase ya dreams for us that don't got time left Let ya voice be heard for those that silent Let these words be your strength Let ya legacy define ya What your purpose is Go and find it Chase ya dreams for us that don't got time left Let ya voice be heard for those that silent Let these words be your strength Let ya legacy define ya Yeah, uh Feel like I'm refinin' my purpose Been tryna find what my worth 'Cuz servin' time as a servant Just to get by isn't workin' Defined by the crime and the verdict Or a nine to five and a purchase Perfect person of interest Lyin' up under the surface We grew our roses from concrete Life is exhausting They shot my homie and I wish he rose from the concrete Never winnin' can't compete no It ain't right What's our purpose if they purposely sabotagin' our lives Lives, lives, lives Lives, lives, lives Lives, lives, lives Lives, lives, lives Lives, lives, black lives What's your purpose Go and find it Yeah, what your purpose is Go and find it What's your purpose Go and find it Yeah, what your purpose is Go and find it Tell me what's your purpose Go and find it Yeah, what your purpose is Go and find it What's your purpose Go and find it Yeah, what your purpose is Go and find it

I am just another Wanna be free Wanna be free How much the fee How much it cost Just another prole When he closes his eyes He dreams of freedom I said I am just another prole When he closes his eyes He dreams of freedom I wanna be Yeah, how much does it cost Tell me, How many dollars does it take to absolve How many inequalities to even the odds How many bodies gotta leave to cover the charge Tell me We came from gods, kings, and queens And now we Are merely cogs in the machine That are rou-tinely targeted Tarnishin' our dreams I'm harboring the faith that a lining is in the seams Short Sighted when I see These policies made of greed Intentionally created to silence all of our people Violence Protesting They slaughterin' Human beings A part of me Truly sees Dichotomy In between Apologies And their grievances Swallowing All they reasonings Fallacies All they feeding us Wolves guiding the sheep, tell me How much does it cost to be free Tell me How much does it cost to be free I don't know what it feels like To be free How much it cost I said I am just another prole When he closes his eyes He dreams of freedom I said I am just another prole When he closes his eyes He dreams of freedom I wanna be free I beg, I beg, I beg nobody tells you how your tone should be Please do not forget we came from nothing less than royalty Magesty's who shaped the Earth Skin was black as soil be Black as oil be You look exactly how you're s'posed to be I beg, I beg, I beg nobody tells you how your tone should be Please do not forget we came from nothing less than royalty Magesty's who shaped the Earth Skin was black as soil be Black as oil be You look exactly how you're s'posed to be I beg, I beg, I beg nobody tells you how your tone should be Please do not forget we came from nothing less than royalty Magesty's who shaped the Earth Skin was black as soil be Black as oil be You look exactly how you're s'posed to be I beg, I beg, I beg nobody tells you how your tone should be Please do not forget we came from nothing less than royalty Magesty's who shaped the Earth Skin was black as soil be Black as oil be You look exactly how you're s'posed to be Wanna be free Won't you free my people We wanna be free

I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you Put in your hands I swear to I ain't never had nothin' And I don't have much to give But if I could make you stand for somethin' Then it make my purpose real Listen here You ain't got nothin' to fear Wipe away all of your tears Make it abundantly clear You way in front of your peers Your only opponent the mirror Look at how I got here, huh Locked inside, but I was out there, huh Boxed my life, no one else cared, huh Now my mind so out there bruh I was down and up With the pounds and cups Sick of scroungin' up All these ounces of An amount that never amount to much And a thousand mountains, crowded above I was feelin' lower than the lowest Loneliness controlled my every motive Only focused on being noticed Notice we could never get a hold of A piece of the pie Wonder if there even a god Wonder if He see through my eyes Wonder if I'll meet him or not or has he been a lie Thought I had the world in my reach Then I had it crumble in my palm I was tryna live like a king I was making moves like a pawn Doors never opened for me Used to tell myself that they was locked Do you see you've always had the key Livin' in your conscious all along I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you I place my faith I place my faith in you Put it in your hands I swear to No church for the wild No rest for the wicked Been servin' awhile Still got the rest of my sentence Heard the sky got too many angels And they've all but filled their section So I've been raising Hell To get to Heaven Call the reverend I need his faith And amazing grace to hug me Need a blessing to give me strength To face this world that judge me Can't nobody feel my pain Now I hardly make an effort This ache inside my heart Need more than a few Excedrin Hope God can read this letter Or at least relay the message Let my life become a mentor Change a kid's intentions Swear I didn't know what intent was My life was lacking wisdom Swear I didn't know what intent was 'Till intent sent me to prison Help me change perspective Give me healthy visions Help me help the helpless Pay me in forgiveness Help me change perspective Give me healthy visions Help me help the helpless And pay me in forgiveness

Fulminate To explode or express with extreme protest We focused this project on this particular verb With hopes that certain themes would reach people who had experienced Similar dreams, schemes, demons, and everything in-between Who am I to say these things, well My name is Marquise Green and I Am a poet, teacher, student Usin' music to release myself from ruin What I mean is prudent, you see, I Am my own Judas And I Threw my head into music To keep it out of nooses And I want us all liberated We're not truly free until the tree that Ms. Nina sung about is seen fruitless They say the apple don't fall far And I don't think it's Far-fetched to say that we're not so far gone From the same harm that befell our ancestors Crosses still burn Officers murder Coffins still turn Still dodgin' Klan members And I say that to say this Racism is still Very alive and Buried inside The layers of pride That weave the fibers That we the people Are "unitedly" standin' upon Coincidentally It took these failures developmentally And combined with the experience Partaken by myself, friends, and my family That helped me develop Mentally enough to create this project And through this process It helped me progress As a human to realize that I need to use my voice to provide context Hopefully help unravel this whole complex That suppresses my fellow melanated brothers and sisters I've spent my whole life Wondering if everything I've ever been told was a lie And that when I die, there isn't an afterlife And then my brother told me some grand advice He advised me to live to the fullest Because there's no guarantee you'll survive After this rollercoaster called Life is done So after applyin' some of This logic I got Pissed off 'cuz No matter how hard I saw my friends and fam' Try to Live proper The amount of institutional blocks in place Made it hard to fix problems Think about Flint They still can't Get water So miss me with the irrelevance You wanna make America great again Blacks, Natives, Islanders, Hispanics, Asians Ask one if America was ever great to them When all we see televised is hatred Wars between nations Poverty and displacement Don't blame us when we begin to make our own directions Which brings me to one question Why do you try to hide the White lies that Lead to our lives Being gentrified By the guys who's nine to five Provides enough for sustainable life If you feel like you're being threatened Because our skin isn't your complexion And disregard what our intent is Then we will become a menace And don't tell me slavery is dead We went from being whipped and chained To buyin' whips and chains, let me explain That gold on your neck That designer on your belt Is just extra cash you've given to a corporation We've become so infatuated with fashion and materialism That we willingly halt our advancement and support an Insidious system, hidden in the disguise of capitalism We still slaves I can't stand it Nike, Gucci, Jordan, we still branded This thirst for brandin', and success Actually leads us to a mess We become so thirsty to get out of poverty And find relief That some of us start Robbin' people 'Cuz America doesn't allow us to get by, honestly And at what cost They don't wanna keep us educated They wanna keep us lost Don't believe me Here's facts African American's make up thirteen percent of the U.S. population But make up forty percent U.S. people incarcerated Imagine that How can we trust a government that wants us in shackles That sounds like Stockholm Which also brings us to a crossroad To cope with the racial disparity Many of us self-medicate In the Hood, there's a lack of programs Telling us to Telling us to meditate Or to help us with Alcoholism, drug use, or our mental health So what do we do Many of us drown ourselves And become another statistic on the hitlist that the one percent of this great country has administered Call Mortal Kombat, they bout to finish us Do you know how hard it is To tell someone in prison To hold they head Knowin' they'll never get to hold they kids And if they kill themselves Ain't nobody gonna hold they breathe Saying these things are hard for me Because somebody without a purpose Is something that they want us to be So my advice to you Is to love whatever it is you do And pursue it whole-heartedly Remember how hard your ancestors fought to make America A place for you to start something Remember you are cut from the cloth of Kings and queens Who's skin was black as ink And are destined to do incredible things You look exactly how you're s'posed to There's no debate And above all else Challenge racism At every opportunity Do not allow Anybody Vice Or institution to ruin you And never lose yo' faith This is how we strike back As quick as lightin' With all the love, wisdom, and knowledge That we Unapologetically Black We fulminate