[Verse 1]
Yeah, sometimes I wanna disappear like I just don't exist
Or find a time machine and take me back when I was six
Maybe younger, either way, I guess the point of it
Would be to tell that little kid that he's gon' take a lotta hits
Yeah, I'd probably grab your hand and tell you life is hard
If you got questions or you need advice, then talk to God
'Cause He's the only one that listens even when you think He isn't
Even good people are great at makin' bad decisions, yeah (Oh)
They ain't gon' take it serious
You find out pretty quick that life is more than just appearances
I know some things we could avoid to save embarrassment
But everything that breaks you down can also build your character
'Cause people love to see you fail, just be aware of it
Don't let nobody tell you who to be or write your narrative
Look, we're all products of the things that we experience
But there's a big difference between confidence and arrogance
You hearin' this?
I know that you don't get it now, but you gon' get it later
I know you feel like you're alone and no one loves you maybe
And you gon' cover insecurities with lotsa anger
The weird thing is someday all of this will make you famous (Oh)
You start to write about your life and while they're all relatin'
You'll make up a slogan, call it "Real," but feel like you're the fakest
Wish I could tell you that your future's nothin' but amazin'
That's just not the case, and I guess I just don't know how to say this
[Chorus]
I don't know if you can hear me or not
But if you can, I just want you to know
You gon' make a lotta mistakes
And they gon' laugh in our face
That's part of life, that's just the way that it goes
(That's just the way that it goes)
And I don't know if you can hear me or not
But if you can, I just need you to get it
I know you been questionin' life
Trust me, I know what it's like
I'm here for you if you need someone to listen
Do you need someone to listen?
[Verse 2]
See, Mom and Dad are not together, they took different routes
But you probably already knew, you gettin' older now
Remember back when Mom picked us up from Grandma's house?
And she hid her boyfriend in the trunk and drove a couple miles?
Down the street, and then she pulled over to let him out
'Cause she ain't want Dad to know she had these type of dudes around
'Cause last time he found out, he had to take us from her
You look uncomfortable, I'm sorry, let me change the subject (Hey)
You know how we've always struggled with abandonment? (Yeah)
And when we feel like someone's leaving, we start panickin'? (Yeah)
And yo, I wish I could say I've learned to manage it
You think it's bad now, but you don't know the half of it
Passion is somethin' we have never lacked
We see it the most when we're writin' raps
They think it's funny now, let 'em laugh
I know you think it's just an outlet when you're really mad
But you don't know the platform you're about to have (Oh)
I know some things about the future you ain't ready for
I know some things that you gon' cover up, but can't ignore
And what hurts is they gon' surface at the worst moments
And we gon' act like it don't hurt us, but it hurts, don't it?
We walk around with the devil talkin' on both shoulders
Wish I could tell you that he disappears when we get older
But that's just not the case, and I know you feel out of place
And everything is not okay, and life can be a lot to take, but…
[Chorus]
I don't know if you can hear me or not
But if you can, I just want you to know
You gon' make a lotta mistakes
And they gon' laugh in our face
That's part of life, that's just the way that it goes
(That's just the way that it goes)
And I don't know if you can hear me or not
But if you can, I just need you to get it
I know you been questionin' life
Trust me, I know what it's like
I'm here for you if you need someone to listen
Do you need someone to listen?
[Verse 3]
You know how intoxicated people make us nervous?
To the point sometimes we shake and it feels so disturbin'
Don't be scared, that's just trauma tryna reach the surface
And tell us everyone we love is gonna try to hurt us
Which isn't true, but it's a lie that both of us believe in
Yeah, you might get a glimpse of happiness from your achievements
But what you'll learn as you get older, every time you reach one
Is you'll just make another goal that doesn't lead to freedom
See, some things about to happen that you can't imagine
At 24, you'll drop an album, and you'll call it Mansion
At 25, you'll put out Therapy and gain some traction
Skip to track number four, now that's a really sad one
Yeah, Perception's coming next, we 'bout to reach the masses
It sounds awesome; at the same time, it doesn't matter
At 27, we'll make millions, but it's really sad 'cause
You learn to realize that none of this will make you happy
[Outro]
I wish that I could look at you with empathy
Sometimes I feel like I've become what you were scared to be
Which makes it really hard to look at you with sympathy
'Cause if I'm feeling bad for you, then I have to feel bad for me
And that's just something I feel like we don't deserve
That's why I'm always looking down on you, I know it hurts
I'm sure you have a lot of questions
I've been tryna search to find us both some answers
I'll be here for you if things get worse
Too many faces, too many faces, too many faces
Nate was written by NF & Tommee Profitt.
Nate was produced by Tommee Profitt & NF.
In an Instagram live-stream a day after The Search’s release, NF stated that he took part in an activity during therapy that consisted of him having a conversation with his younger self, which led to the songs production.
The question is answered at the 9:23 mark of the below video:
After I toured the first leg of Perception, I was the most depressed I had ever been, in the worst place I’ve ever been and so I had to check myself into like a therapy place. I was there for like four days and just disconnected from the world. I kind of came up with the concept for “Nate” while I w...
Yes, “Nate” was certified gold by the RIAA on June 27, 2023.