[Intro - whispered, close, tape delay, heartbeat bass] They build boxes... They never look inside... [Verse 1 - intimate soul, Rhodes + pulsing bass, low contralto] You labeled my forehead with paper crowns, Built a cage and called it kindness. You never knocked on my soul's front door, Afraid of the lantern in my darkness. You said: "Be quiet, be small, be same, Be a shadow with no name." [Pre-Chorus - phaser guitar enters, rising] But I... I was not born to be echo... [Chorus - Full band, powerful, soul rock] I don't want to survive, I WANT TO LIVE! I won't be your shadow, I WAS BORN TO GLARE! I rip the boxes you stitched from your fear, My soul is not a costume you can wear! You cannot dim a sun with your hands, My light is not yours to command! [Verse 2 - trip-hop beat, subtle dubstep wobble] I listen in the silence between your words, That's where the truth still breathes. Every scar is a constellation on my skin, Every fall taught my soul how to swim. I won't walk in shoes made of your doubt, [Psychedelic Breakdown - breathy prayer, then heavy DUBSTEP DROP] I am the ember you couldn't blow out... I am the ocean you feared to drown in... LET THEM HEAR IT! LET THEM SEE IT! RAW AS I AM! [Final Chorus - Epic, gospel choir, high release] I DON'T WANT TO SURVIVE, I WANT TO LIVE! I WON'T BE YOUR SHADOW, I WAS BORN TO GLARE! This is my temple, my own wild shrine, Here I light MYSELF - and the light is MINE! [Outro - fading, voice + bass only] Don't box me in... I'm already on fire.
