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Lyrics
[Verse 1]
6 AM
Gray sky
Coffee cold on the Red Line
Grade book open on her knee
Circling dreams in red and green
Broken copier
Busted clock
Thirty kids in a room that rocks
She learns their faces
Lives
And names
Buys the tissues
Pays with change
[Chorus]
They keep on loving in a loveless budget
Keep on giving when the giving hurts
From the South Side halls to the North Side stairwells
They hold this city in a wrinkled shirt
Overworked
Underpaid
Still they stay
Writing futures in the margins every day
Overworked
Underpaid
Still they stay
(oh, they stay)
Writing futures in the margins every day
[Verse 2]
Security guard at the metal door
Knows who’s hungry by the way they walk the floor
Lunch lady slipping one more tray
“Baby
Eat first
Then you face the day”
Social worker with a trembling hand
Fills the gaps no policy can
Principal praying that the roof won’t leak
Buckets lined up when the clouds all speak
[Chorus]
They keep on loving in a loveless budget
Keep on giving when the giving hurts
From the West Side gyms to the Lakefront classrooms
They hold this city in a wrinkled shirt
Overworked
Underpaid
Still they stay
Writing futures in the margins every day
Overworked
Underpaid
Still they stay
(oh, they stay)
Writing futures in the margins every day
[Bridge]
Who taught the nurse to stitch your knees?
Who taught the poet what words could mean?
Who stayed late while your mama worked nights?
Who walked you home by the traffic light?
When the storms roll in
Who stands out front?
Taking all that wind at once
Every cap and gown that graces June
Started in a crowded room
[Chorus]
They keep on loving in a loveless budget
Keep on giving when the giving hurts
From the chalk-stained hands to the tired assistants
They hold this city in a wrinkled shirt
Overworked
Underpaid
Still they stay
Writing futures in the margins every day
Overworked
Underpaid
Still they stay
(oh, they stay)
Writing futures in the margins every day
Details
GeneratedJan 29, 2026
Duration3:44
LanguageEnglish
Style
funk, Dusty Chicago blues-soul with lo-fi rain ambience, male vocals. Clean guitar riff and warm Rhodes piano sit over a lazy funk groove; upright bass walks under brushed drums and soft vinyl crackle. Verses stay intimate and low, horn pads sneaking in on the back half; chorus swells with stacked harmonies and a simple, shout-along hook. Bridge leans into jazzier chords and call-and-response ad-libs, then drops back to voice and keys for a tender outro., soul, blues, jazz, lo-fi
Credits
Prompt byCameronOlsen
ModelAria v5
Prompt
A heart felt song about the over worked and underpaid teachers and staff of Chicago Public Schools. About how they work to shape the children’s futures., blues, soul, funk, jazz, lo-fi, rain
