[Verse 1]
Salt on my sneakers
Sand in my cereal bowl
Board in the backyard
Rust on the radio
Mama yelling “slippers!”
Windows all open wide
Neighbors grilling dinner
Same smoke
Same tide
[Pre-Chorus]
Arcades on a Friday
Quarters in my hand
Sunburn on my shoulders
Dreams bigger than the land
Boom box on the cooler
Static in between
But every little crackle
Felt like gasoline (hey!)
[Chorus]
I grew up by the waves in the backyard
Hanging towels on the fence like a postcard
We were broke but the ocean was ours
Under cheap string lights
Counting falling stars
From the bus stop straight to the shoreline
All my firsts in the glow of that low tide
Every laugh
Every fight
Every scar
Started right there by the waves in the backyard (oh-oh)
[Verse 2]
Scraped knees on lava rock
First kiss behind the store
Putting on my best talk
Heart racing even more
Uncles in the driveway
Cards on a cardboard box
Stories ‘bout the old days
While we learned to crack the locks
[Pre-Chorus]
Walkman on my waistband
Tape about to break
Sneaking out at midnight
For another secret take
Feet in the warm water
Future in my eyes
Thought the 80s couldn’t
Ever say goodbye (no way)
[Chorus]
I grew up by the waves in the backyard
Hanging towels on the fence like a postcard
We were broke but the ocean was ours
Under cheap string lights
Counting falling stars
From the bus stop straight to the shoreline
All my firsts in the glow of that low tide
Every laugh
Every fight
Every scar
Started right there by the waves in the backyard (oh-oh, yeah)
[Bridge]
Now the roofs look smaller
When I fly back home
Same palms
Same corner
But I’m grown
I’m grown
Still taste that sea spray
In every song I play
Every beat takes me back
To that barefoot day (hey!)
[Chorus]
I grew up by the waves in the backyard
Hanging towels on the fence like a postcard
We were broke but the ocean was ours
Under cheap string lights
Counting falling stars
From the bus stop straight to the shoreline
All my firsts in the glow of that low tide
Every laugh
Every fight
Every scar
Started right there by the waves in the backyard (oh-oh)
Started right there by the waves in the backyard