Life’s Hard On The Boulevard

**Intro (6 bars)** Yeah… Late nights, streetlights flicker like broken dreams Sirens harmonize with the fiends’ schemes Sidewalk cracked like the hearts we scarred Every lesson came the motherfuckin’ hard way on the boulevard If you feel that pressure in your chest… Then you already know the rest. --- **Verse 1 (16 bars)** Life’s hard on the boulevard, concrete cold, Where survival worth more than a pot of gold, Youngins learn to duck shots ‘fore they learn to read, Mama prayin’ every night, “Lord, let him succeed.” Corner store prophets with a bottle in hand, Talkin’ ‘bout the good old days in a fallen land, Cops roll slow like predators huntin’, Flashin’ lights, everybody start runnin’. I seen homies lose hope to a needle vein, Seen fathers disappear like summer rain, Bills stack higher than the projects tall, Dreams shrink small when your back’s to the wall. But I keep a little fire in my chest intact, Turn pain into poetry when I react, Every scar tell a story that’s raw and true, Life’s hard on the boulevard, what it do? --- **Chorus (8 bars – Male R&B Hook)** Life’s hard on the boulevard, baby hold on tight, Through the darkness we gon’ find some light, Even when the road feel scarred and scarred, We survive, we strive on the boulevard. Wipe your tears, don’t let ‘em see you fall, Stand tall even when the world feel small, From the gutter we rise like a shooting star, Life’s hard… but we stronger than the boulevard. --- **Verse 2 (16 bars)** Liquor store lottery dreams and scratch-offs, Tryna cash in hope before the lights off, Old heads preach but the youth don’t listen, ‘Cause the system never gave ‘em a pot to piss in. Teachers overwhelmed, classrooms packed, History books still tellin’ lies as fact, Tell me how we supposed to see a better way, When opportunity move like it scared to stay? Little sis workin’ doubles at the diner spot, While her baby daddy hustle just to dodge the cops, Everybody chasin’ paper just to feel secure, But the money don’t heal what the heart endure. Still I ride for the block that raised my name, Through the sunshine, through the acid rain, If I make it out, I’ma bring my crew, ‘Cause life’s hard on the boulevard for you too. --- **Chorus (8 bars – Male R&B Hook)** Life’s hard on the boulevard, baby hold on tight, Through the darkness we gon’ find some light, Even when the road feel scarred and scarred, We survive, we strive on the boulevard. Wipe your tears, don’t let ‘em see you fall, Stand tall even when the world feel small, From the gutter we rise like a shooting star, Life’s hard… but we stronger than the boulevard. --- **Verse 3 (16 bars)** I done seen funerals turn to block reunions, Tears mix with Hennessy communions, Mama in black with a folded flag tight, Another young soldier lost to the night. We scream “fuck the world” ‘cause the world feel cold, Tryna find a little peace in a heart so old, But revenge just a cage with a shiny key, And that cycle keep claimin’ you and me. So I speak for the lost and the locked away, For the ones doin’ life ‘cause they caught a stray, For the kids drawin’ chalk where the bodies fell, Livin’ in a corner of a livin’ hell. Yet I still see hope in a newborn cry, In a young black queen with her head held high, If we plant new seeds in the broken yard, Maybe life won’t be so hard on the boulevard. --- **Chorus (8 bars – Male R&B Hook)** Life’s hard on the boulevard, baby hold on tight, Through the darkness we gon’ find some light, Even when the road feel scarred and scarred, We survive, we strive on the boulevard. Wipe your tears, don’t let ‘em see you fall, Stand tall even when the world feel small, From the gutter we rise like a shooting star, Life’s hard… but we stronger than the boulevard. --- **Outro (6 bars)** Yeah… streetlights still glow in the dark Even when the city tryna tear you apart From the pavement cracks to the prison yard We carry our scars like a battle card Life’s hard, that’s the truth we guard— But we kings and queens on the boulevard.