[Verse 1]
Hand-me-down shoes
Busted sole, rainy walk to school
Kitchen light hum, mama at the table
Counting tips, bills spread like labels
I heard grown-up words
"Shutoff, overdue, we short"
So I learned early
How to stretch one dream through the dark
[Pre-Chorus]
Every "no" on my name
Felt like weight on my chest
But I turned every doubt
To another rep, another set
[Chorus]
Love, pain, struggle, and strength
It all lives in my veins
I was built by the breaks
Not just the wins that I claim
From the dirt, from the rain
I rose up anyway
Love, pain, struggle, and strength
That's the armor on my name (yeah)
[Verse 2]
They laughed at my plans
"Little kid, you won't leave this block"
Recording hooks on a cracked-screen phone
Closet booth, hoodie stuffed in the socks
I missed parties, missed sleep
Missed calls from some friends I outgrew
I chose verses over comfort
Let the old me fade from view
[Pre-Chorus]
I was talking to the ceiling
Praying it would talk back
Now the echo of my past
Is the rhythm under every track
[Chorus]
[Bridge]
Now they see the stage lights, think it came fast (nah)
They don't see the bus rides, empty late class
They don't see my hands shake signing that lease
First key to a door that my folks never reached
I flew mama to the front row, first row, front seat (yeah)
Told her, "This is what you built when you believed in me"
Every tear, every fight, every long night spent
It wrote this moment, line by line, breath by breath
[Chorus]