Chorus
To recognize the things that came before us,
appreciate the fact they put it down
and maybe if it wasn’t for the sacrifice,
we wouldn’t have the privileges of now,
to recognize the things that came before us,
acknowledge the importance of the past,
cos’ maybe if it wasn’t for the sacrifice,
we wouldn’t have the freedoms that we have.


Verse One
Everyone’s entitled to they dreams, to desire more,
something’s really special bout’ rewards that we acquire poor,
coming up in neighbourhoods with schools under-performing,
remember your parents calling you for breakfast in the morning,
you were there to see the struggle,
bust they ass at work while you in class getting in trouble,
talking back to teachers any way that you desired,
while mom’s tired, doing everything that she’s required to prevent from being fired,
if she spoke to her manger how you spoke back,
you would be fiending for something to eat like you smoked crack
and so you get a little older, little braver, little taller,
got a fresh pair of Jordans, so you thinking you a baller
and no one can tell you nothing cos’ you think you know it all,
feels cool to have no grey hairs and not be going bald,
feels good to get a paycheck and get to spend it all on yourself
without a thought of saving a small portion
and some peeps will try to tell you what’s important,
try to give you support, but find that you ain’t absorbent
so you tell em’ that they time has passed, it's your time,
but you don’t realise that time will flash in no time,
cos’ twenty is a stone throw from thirty
and thirty from forty, forty from fifty, then Lord have mercy,
you half a century old, or half a century young,
speculating on how much more time to come.


Chorus


Verse Two
Everyone’s entitled to their views, so speak with confidence,
say whatever they like but expect to bear no consequence,
tell you how great they are when everybody else incompetent
and then get in they feelings when they ain’t receiving compliments,
it’s the age of validation, it’s the age of attention,
it’s the age of advertising, it’s the age of perception,
it’s the age of click bait, it’s the age of running scams,
it’s the age of controversy, getting everything on cam
and communication poorer than ever,
ain’t nobody trying to listen to no boring professor
who talk the talk but never lived it,
but now you wanna school me with your
YouTube influencer six-minute snippet,
better get a can and kick it, or kill it with your theory son,
cos’ I ain’t seeing clearly what you saying, that’s sincerely son
and I ain’t seeing nearly the results that you declare will come,
but I am seeing yearly that everything stays the same,
cos’ some wanna’ just show up and take all the prizes,
not concerned with the process, blind to the compromises,
most things generic, fabricated, synthetic
and when I don’t get it, they claim it’s esoteric,
I was taught to respect that which came before me,
cos’ everybody got a journey, a passage, a story
and the tapestry of now is made up of the tapestry of prior,
so let the history inspire.


Chorus