Ink Under My Skin

[Intro]
Every line on my body got a backstory
You just see the canvas
I remember every cut
Every winter I was stranded (yeah)
[Verse 1]
I wear my scars like a roadmap
You just call it "hard", I call it "way back"
Cold floors, blue lights, loud voices
Thought I had one path, had no choices
You trace lines on my wrist like design work
I see that one night, face down, hurt
You say "it looks tough", say "it looks deep"
I see the six months I barely got sleep
[Chorus]
They just see tattoos
I see the places I survived
You just see patterns
I see the days I almost died
Ink on my skin
But the meanings underneath stay mine
You call it beautiful
I call it proof I stayed alive (oh)
[Verse 2]
You like the color on my shoulder, call it "fire"
I see a small room, empty, no choir
Silence so loud I could taste it
Hands on my head, thought I'd wasted
That mark by my ribs, yeah, you call it "style"
I see a hospital bed, white tile
You say "art", I say "old pain"
You see a picture, I see rain
[Chorus]
They just see tattoos
I see the places I survived
You just see patterns
I see the days I almost died
Ink on my skin
But the meanings underneath stay mine
You call it beautiful
I call it proof I stayed alive (stayed alive)
[Bridge]
You see flowers
I see funerals
You see letters
I see sent goodbyes
You see colors
I see chemicals
You see a body
I see all the times I tried
[Chorus]
They just see tattoos
I see the places I survived
You just see patterns
I see the days I almost died
Ink on my skin
Every line a loaded life
You call it beautiful
I call it proof I stayed alive (yeah)
Proof I stayed alive

rap, Moody trap rap over booming 808s, close-mic male vocals. Sparse piano chords and distant choir pads create a haunted, cinematic bed; verses stay tight and percussive, hook opens with wider harmonies and stacked ad-libs. The energy simmers with restrained rage, then swells in the chorus with heavier low end and reverb blooms.