(Record scratch, a somber Ugandan folk melody sample plays, then cuts to a hard 808 beat)
(Intro)
Yeah…
Turn the mic up…
For the people.
From the ghetto to the Parliament,they feel you.
This is Kampala.This is the struggle.
This is your story.
(Chorus)
They see the red beret,they hear the fire in the speech
From the studio booth to the people you tryna reach
They call you"The Ghetto Gladiator," that's a fact
Singing"Freedom," but the system pushin' back
It's bigger than the music,it's a movement, take a look
They block the radio spins,so you preachin' from the book
Yeah,this is for the real one, this is for the street
This a three-minute lesson in the struggle and the beat.
(Verse 1)
They knew you as the singer,"Tuliyambala Engule"
A different kind of champion,back in primary school
But you saw the sickness in the system,saw the pain up in the slum
Traded the stage lights for the protest,that's when the real work had begun
They thought it was a phase,just an artist with a cause
'Til you formed the People Power,breakin' all the written laws
The red beret a symbol,now the anthem's in the street
Not just for the charts no more,it's for the people that you meet
From a musician to a Minister,they never saw it comin'
Now the political machine,man, they stomach's startin' rumblin'
You speak for the jobless,for the nurses, for the teachers
Your platform is the pavement,you're the loudest of the preachers.
(Chorus)
They see the red beret,they hear the fire in the speech
From the studio booth to the people you tryna reach
They call you"The Ghetto Gladiator," that's a fact
Singing"Freedom," but the system pushin' back
It's bigger than the music,it's a movement, take a look
They block the radio spins,so you preachin' from the book
Yeah,this is for the real one, this is for the street
This a three-minute lesson in the struggle and the beat.
(Verse 2)
I see the scars of Nalufenye,the stories that they tell
The price of speaking truth to power,you know that all too well
The concerts turn to court dates,the fans become a crowd
That chants your name as riot shields get louder and more loud
They try to block your rallies,cut the power to the mic
But the message just gets amplified throughout the silent night
You're a member of the Parliament,but still you feel the heat
The struggle didn't end,the battlefield just changed the street
It's a war of attrition,fighting lies with simple truth
For the hopeful,for the weary, for the forgotten youth
They can try to lock you up and try to tarnish your name
But the fire you ignited,yeah, it's burnin' all the same.
(Chorus)
They see the red beret,they hear the fire in the speech
From the studio booth to the people you tryna reach
They call you"The Ghetto Gladiator," that's a fact
Singing"Freedom," but the system pushin' back
It's bigger than the music,it's a movement, take a look
They block the radio spins,so you preachin' from the book
Yeah,this is for the real one, this is for the street
This a three-minute lesson in
