[Verse 1] Clocking in on the baseline (Yeah) Doing exactly what the paper signed They want the fire but they pay for ice Ain't giving up my spirit twice You keep the profit from the midnight oil While I’m just burning in the corporate soil No more volunteering, no more extra strain I’m cutting the supply chain to my brain [Pre-Chorus] (Rhodes chords swelling, rhythm stumbling into steady) You call it lazy, I call it fair You want my soul but it isn't there The contract is broken, the numbers don't lie So I'm holding back what you didn't buy [Chorus] (Call and response hooks with barbershop harmony pads) (Call): Flat pay! (Response): Flat effort, baby. (Call): My time! (Response): You don't own it lately. (Call): Quiet! (Response): But we're moving steady. (Chopped vocal sample): Save that energy... save that energy... Reset the boundary, yeah we ready. [Verse 2] (Sub-bass dropping heavy, live congas driving the groove) Urgency manufactured... slammin' right up in my face like a deadline gone rogue in the inbox light... Fake deadlines droppin'... tryna set the pace but I'm dancin' round the chase in this beige-walled maze... They praise the hustler... till he burns right out like that toner cartridge spittin' its last in the middle of the big pitch... But I know the game... they want the free value, that extra leak from the pipeline they won't even pay for... I'm keepin' my peace though... savin' it up for the rest of the week, no extra leaks from this side... Brainpower reserved... like the quiet hum of the backup drive stored away in the server room... Gettin' exactly what I deserve... the focused crown sittin' easy in this fluorescent empire I designed... [Bridge] (Flute counterlines weaving through glitch stutter edits) Shame me on the news, call it entitlement I’m just matching your investment (Echo fade): Your investment... No more crisis mode, no more manufactured struggle I’m stepping out of the hustle. [Chorus] (Call and response hooks with barbershop harmony pads) (Call): Flat pay! (Response): Flat effort, baby. (Call): My time! (Response): You don't own it lately. (Call): Quiet! (Response): But we're moving steady. (Chopped vocal sample): Save that energy... save that energy... Reset the boundary, yeah we ready. [Outro] (Punchy drum bus riding out, tape echo delays on the vocals) Exactly what is required... nothing more. (Chopped vocal): Nothing more... Reclaim the time. Keep the change, I’m keeping my mind. (Bass rolls out into a sub-heavy fade)
