[INTRO – 4 bars | sparse, breath pockets]
(Key: F# minor (very common for this vibe, emotional + dark but sweet)
Scale: F# – G# – A – B – C# – D – E)
(Use this as your anchor:
F#m – D – A – E
That’s your emotional backbone)
(1 . . .) Hmm…
(3 . . .) Iko-ro-du ọmọ…
(1 ... ) No per-mis-sion…
(3 … ) we dey en-ter…
(Bar 3–4 talking drum space)
Let log drum + talking drum breathe — no vocal rush
[VERSE 1 – 16 bars | laid-back drag, baritone tone]
(1 e & a | 2 e & a | 3 e & a | 4 e & a)
Ear-ly morn-ings | no light | but my vi-sion | dey bright
Ma-ma pray | for the boy | make I find | my own light
Street cold | dreams hot | I dey ba-lance | both sides
Emp-ty po-cket | but my mind | full of dol-lar | signs
(Bar 5)
From o-de road | to the main-land | bridge (rest)
Ev-ery step | na risk | but I no | fit cringe
Dem say wait | your turn | I say time | no dey
If hun-ger | be sin | then I sin | ev-ery day
I no fear | si-lence | na there I | dey build
(Bar 10)
All the pain | wey I swal-low | don turn in-to | skill
My guy no | be luck | na the nights | wey I bleed
Now the rhy-thm |dey knock | make the whole | world feel
(Bar 13–16 looser pocket, let beat breathe)
(Short phrases, leave space for log drum replies)
I dey move (rest)… low key (rest)
Mind strong (rest)… no sleep (rest)
God dey (rest)… I see (rest)
Rise soon (pause… talking drum fill)
[CHORUS – 8 bars | tight, chantable, repeat-friendly]
We no need | per-mis-sion (eh eh)
From Iko-ro-du | to the world | we dey mis-sion
Hun-ger in | my bel-ly | no be con-di-tion
Na the fi-re | wey dey give | me ig-ni-tion
We go rise | by force | by fi-re
No re-treat | no ti-re
Ọ-mo we go | hi-gher | hi-gher
Till we touch | that sky | no li-ar
[VERSE 2 – 16 bars | more bounce, slightly faster phrasing]
(Bar 1)
O-mo I don | trek miles | wey no get | map
(Bar 2)
Still dey smile | e-ven when | life set | trap
Dem dey look | my shoe | dem no see | path
Ev-ery scar | wey I get | na part | of craft
See the way | we dey vibe | pain in-side | groove
Jazz chords dey | cry but my | feet still | move
Log drum dey | speak like an-ces-tor | voice
Say ọmọ no dull | make you make | that choice
From the mud | to mar-ble | floor dreams
(Bar 10)
From oka-da runs | to de-sig-ner | schemes
No short-cuts | just God | and grind
Ev-ery loss | don sharp-en | my mind
(Bar 13–16 bounce + pauses again)
(Bar 13) Ọ-rọ mi jin (rest)… feel am deep
No be ev-ry hustle… you go tweet
We dey plant for nights… dark like sin
When light show… we go fully win
[FINAL CHORUS – layered, bigger energy
Same as chorus, but:
* Double the “We no need permission” with backing vocals
* Add call & response (lead vs crowd tone)]
[(NOTES (KEY FOR THE FEEL)
* Drag slightly behind the kick
* Don’t overfill bars 13–16 in verses - log drum must “talk back”
* Baritone delivery: keep vowels long (“riiiise”, “fiiiire”)
* Talking drum moments = replace words with breath or hum, not silence]
(Slight vocal bends (especially C#→ B → A)
Add delay throws on last word of each line)
Laagz
