“Joseph’s Quiet War (Testify Mix)”
[Deep Hook – “Testify”] If it sound too sweet, it got a twist. Don’t expect a damn thing, life don’t grant no wish. Turned my pain into the books they gon’ write, Ink drippin’ truth from them sleepless nights.
Let the truth be told — I’m the last of my breed,
Got it out the mud, stayed loyal through greed.
Stayed real while the world lost sight of the dream,
Where hope get sold and love ain’t what it seem.
I ain’t glorifyin’, I’m testifyin’ — Every scar on my soul still defyin’. [Intro] I’ve been in survival mode for as long as I can remember. Life handed me lessons I never should’ve learned so young.
I’m tired. Not weak — just ready for peace to finally find me. I don’t want chaos. I want calm, a quiet love, And a life that feels safe. I think I’ve earned that much. Yeah… This that real spit — not a flex, but a cry. This that pencil snappin’, this that reason why. They talk about pain like they seen my side,
But they don’t know Joseph — the one who still tried. [Verse 1] Born Joseph from Pittsburg, glasses and grades, Dreams in my backpack, heart full of fades. Mama hummin’ hymns, eyes heavy from the fight, Daddy’s ghost still driftin’ through the night.
Hallway whispers, lunch tray laughs, But I learned quick how to walk my path. While they chased clout, I chased survival, Turned every bruise into somethin’ vital. I been broke, but I never bent,
Ain’t got much, but it’s Heaven-sent. [Hook] I’ve been in survival mode since I could breathe,
Every lesson a scar that I couldn’t leave. I don’t want chaos, I just want peace, A love that’s quiet, a mind that’s free. If I fall, let ‘em know I fought,
Every tear I shed was a price I bought. [Verse 2]
They called me soft, said I’d never make it, But pain made me harder than the ones who fake it. Books in my hand, world on my back, Still showed love when the world turned black. Lost my brother to the streets, lost myself in shame, But I’m still here breathin’, whisperin’ his name. I ain’t no saint, I done sinned for bread, But my heart still pure in this war I bled. [Bridge] If it sound too sweet, better check the code, Behind every smile there’s a story untold. I been loyal in a world that lie, Stayed true when it hurt to try.bNo rehab for the guilt I bear,
Just ink and a prayer in the midnight air. I ain’t hard — I’m haunted, But I own every ghost that taunted.
[Outro] So if you hear this and you feel that pain,
Know you ain’t alone in the cold or rain.
Joseph from Pittsburg still breathin’, still bleedin’,
Still fightin’ these demons that keep feedin’. One day at a time — if I make it, I’m free. If not… just tell the world I fought to be me.
