Perennial

(Intro)

(There's a very raw, slightly bright acoustic guitar riff. You can hear the player's fingers sliding across the strings and A natural, acoustic drum beat kicks in at 90 BPM.)[Female]: I actually opened the living room window today.

[Echo]: (Distant, airy) Let the air in...

[Female]: The breeze didn't feel like a slap in the face for once. It just felt warm. I walked down to the corner bodega around noon without a jacket on, just wearing an old sweatshirt, and my arms didn't even get goosebumps.

I saw this tiny, bright green weed pushing its way right out of a crack in the concrete by the curb.

I don't know why, but it made me stop and just stare at the dirt for a second.

(The acoustic guitar fades down into a warm, humming synth swell that slowly starts to rise underneath your voice.) The ground is finally soft.

[Echo]: (Breathy, closer) Finally soft.

(Verse 1)

[Female]: I ran into your brother at the grocery store on Tuesday.

He looked so awkward when he saw me by the bakery section, like he was trying to decide whether to run away or bring you up.

I just smiled, asked how his dog was doing, and kept walking toward the checkout line.

He ended up telling me that you finally moved off his couch and got a small place on the north side.

Six months ago, hearing that would’ve made my stomach completely drop.

[Echo]: (Whispered) Completely drop...

[Female]: I would’ve spent the whole night overthinking it, wondering who you were living with.

But standing there holding a bag of apples, I realized I didn't actually care.

[Echo]: (Stronger, layering behind your voice) I didn't care.

[Female]: The ghost is totally out of the apartment. My closet is just a place where I put my clothes now.

I didn't just get through the winter.

I outlasted it.

[Echo]: (Triumphant) Outlasted it.

(Build-Up)

(The acoustic drums cut out. A massive, filtering synth wall starts to pump and expand, rising up like a wave of heat. Your vocals get heavily layered, building into a giant, echoing chorus of your own voice.)

[Female]: You can freeze the dirt as hard as you want.

[Echo]: (Glitched, rising pitch) Freeze it down...

[Female]: You can dump a foot of snow on the roof and lock the doors.

But the roots are still down there in the dark, just waiting for the calendar to turn.

I forgot that I’m a perennial.

[Echo]: (Exploding with reverb) A perennial!

[Female]: I always come back up as soon as the sun hits the grass.

Yeah. I always come back.

[Echo & Female Together]: Always.

(THE DROP)

(Future Bass Breakdown)

(The track explodes into a massive, gorgeous Future Bass drop)

(Outro)

[Female]: No coat today.

[Echo]: (Soft, warm trailing delay) No coat...

[Female]: Look at the grass.

[Echo]: (Fading out) Look at it grow...