Now I Know

(Low synth and sparse guitar. Female vocals—spoken, cold)

I gave too much

To people who never gave a damn

I broke my back just to stand

In your shadow

(Gritty guitars build in, slow and tense)

You built me up with paper skin

Told me I could never win

Held your doubts over my head

Now you’re shocked I left you dead

I bit my tongue to keep the peace

Now I spit fire when I speak

Your voice still echoes in my mind

But now I know it was a lie

(Rising rhythm, layered drums)

All the times you pulled me under

Made me feel like I was nothing

Now I see through all the thunder

You were scared of what I’d become

(Hard-hitting drop, clean belts and background screams)

Now I know who I am

You can’t take that back

I was crawling in the dirt

But I rose through the cracks

Now I know what it means

To bleed and not break

You can push me to the edge

But I won’t fade away

(Beat-driven, sharp rhymes)

They said “stay quiet,” so I sharpened the blade

Now every cut’s a verse and I carve what I say

You played God with the guilt, now I see the facade

I was stuck in the fog, now I’m breaking your laws

See, I learned real fast how to fake a smile

While the pressure kept growing in a single file

But I flipped the script, turned pain into breath

Built a war out of wounds and I’m not done yet

(Softer start, intensifying)

You tried to crush me in your silence

Tried to drown me in your doubt

But I’ve turned your noise to violence

And I’m screaming it out loud

Now I know who I am

You can’t take that back

I was crawling in the dirt

But I rose through the cracks

Now I know what it means

To bleed and not break

You can push me to the edge

But I won’t fade away

(Heavy tension, drums and guitar chugs)

(Rapped – Male Vocalist)

You painted me weak—

But the truth’s in the scars

Every fall, every bruise

Every fight in the dark

You pushed, I broke—

But I built from that fracture

Now your voice just fuels

My next chapter

(Screamed – Female Vocalist)

You never broke me!

You just buried me deeper!

You never owned me!

I just made myself meaner!

You left me falling!

But I built from the bottom!

And now I’m climbing—

WATCH ME—WATCH ME—WATCH ME!

(Begins soft with piano and rap, explodes into full band)

(Rapped – Male Vocalist)

Took every lie like a lesson learned

Now I strike like the flame you burned

(Sung – Female Vocalist)

Now I know who I am

You can’t take that back

I was crawling in the dirt

But I rose through the cracks

Now I know what it means

To bleed and not break

You can push me to the edge

But I won’t fade away

(Soft guitars and synth fade, emotional finish)

No, I won’t fade away

I’m brighter in the dark

Brighter in the dark