Defiant Ones

[Verse 1]
Yeah
Will they say of me I made it?
I ain't here to get famous
I ain't here for the playlist
I just pray they play this in years to come
Like my grandson in the basement playin' my tape for his mate
Saying, "My grandfather made this"
Speaking like a prophet, call me the baptist
Smokin', standing in tatters as I speak to the masses
We're going backwards, divided like fractions
Miming like actors despite the mask that distracts us
We that child under the mattress
Holding the world like we're Atlas, shoulders swollen and haggard
Tryna find our soul in the damages, some hope in the blackness
I wish I was a better son, a better husband, a better brother
I hide behind the covers, hold my breath like I'm smothered
I say nothing, I'm stubborn, tryna to hold it together
And make a mil' from the record, smellin' like Tuscan leather
I'ma do this forever like I believe that it helps
'Cause you can't give away your heart without bleeding yourself
Man, I ain't nothing to aspire to
I broke every commandment by Tuesday
And I lied, too
It was the day before and we all just on the floor
Naked as the day we're born
Waking up to face the war

[Chorus]
This one's for you fighting with your back against the rope
This one's for you lighting up the room without a hope
This one's for you dancing through the fire and the smoke
Bringing beauty to this struggle like a rose
And this one's for you choosing that your story isn't done
This one's for you standing up after you've been overcome
This one's for you waiting for the rising of the sun
Dawn is comin' for every defiant one

[Verse 2]
Life used to look so beautiful
Then you lose someone you love and it starts to look unusual
Picasso paintings with abstract faces, I'm tryna place it
Give me the courage to face the pain and pick flowers in a wasteland
If you're on the other end of this, I pray that you remember this hope is real
You were meant for it, I swear, you got the strength for this
Man, that's all our friendship is
Walking through this Hell on Earth
Bringing Heaven where the devil lives, uh
We're on the wrong side of the tracks, man, I know that
Taking pictures of our pain with a Kodak
I look closer at the image and I see that you ain't finished
You were dancin' through the struggle, thanking God for all you've givin'
And I thank you for this livin' 'cause you showed us that these prisons
Are made of what we give 'em, we ain't bound to no one's system
We are free
Ain't that something to believe? We are free (We are free)

[Chorus]
This one's for you fighting with your back against the rope
This one's for you lighting up the room without a hope
This one's for you dancing through the fire and the smoke
Bringing beauty to this struggle like a rose
And this one's for you choosing that your story isn't done
This one's for you standing up after you've been overcome
This one's for you waiting for the rising of the sun
Dawn is comin' for every defiant one

[Bridge]
I stare at the ceiling, I'm scared of my feelings
Tears on my bed sheet and hear myself breathing
Leaving out peace, I stop believing
Searching for meaning, and seeking out Eden
I wasted time waitin', my vision was vacant
Literally missing [the bones [?] pickin'?]
All I am sayin' is I got no patience for murderous moments of those who are hatin'
I write for freedom
But you stand peace, you're broken and beaten
With nothing to say 'cause [?]
[?] is reachin' [?] for the [?]
Deep in the evening when demons are speaking
Life is too heavy, you think about leaving
You're worth it, believe it, hear what I'm speaking (Keep on breathing)
Keep on breathing, keep on breathing

[Chorus]
This one's for you fighting with your back against the rope
This one's for you lighting up the room without a hope
This one's for you dancing through the fire and the smoke
Bringing beauty to this struggle like a rose (Oh, woah)
And this one's for you choosing that your story isn't done ([?])
This one's for you standing up after you've been overcome
This one's for you waiting for the rising of the sun
Dawn is comin' for every defiant one, yeah