Say It Plain

[Intro — dark sub drone, 808 comes in, voice low] Yeah No costume No sermon Say it plain [Hook — blunt spoken chant, catchy call-and-response] Say it plain I been low, I been late I been broke, I been brave I been wrong, I been changed Say it plain I don’t hide from the stain I don’t run from the weight I don’t smile for the pain Say it plain If it cost, I paid If it cracked, I stayed If I lost, I made [Verse 1 — technical rap, pocketed, clean] Look, I had pride with a dent in the bumper Had fear doing laps in my stomach Had days where the light looked punished Still punched through with the bills still coming Everybody loud when the risk look distant Everybody wise when the wound go hidden I don’t need quotes from a clean-cut witness I need real ground and a clear decision I had shame in the back of my throat Had to talk less, had to map that slope Had to count cash with a tight-ass hope Had to make one spark keep a whole man woke No halo, no villain, no theater mask No fake street tale from a borrowed past Just a hard truth in a workday bag And a bad month trying to break my laugh I know pressure got a voice, it whispers I know guilt got a grip, it lingers I know help can arrive with fingers Pointing at scars like they pulled the triggers So I got small with the circle now Less fake love, more working out Less big talk, more word-of-mouth Less “watch me,” more earn it out [Pre-Hook — rap voice, rising] Mark that loss Face that name Drop that act Hold that frame No clean path No soft claim If it’s real Say it plain [Hook — blunt spoken chant, heavier bounce] Say it plain I been low, I been late I been broke, I been brave I been wrong, I been changed Say it plain I don’t hide from the stain I don’t run from the weight I don’t smile for the pain Say it plain If it cost, I paid If it cracked, I stayed If I lost, I made [Verse 2 — harder, more bounce] I don’t want pity with a camera angle I don’t want peace if the truth get strangled I don’t want wins that my soul can’t handle I want clean math and a lit damn candle Seen grown men lie to protect one image Seen good hearts rot from a bad incentive Seen love get cold when the money went missing Seen stress make a saint talk wicked I’m not innocent, I’m not finished I got flaws with a fresh coat in it I got nights where the room kept spinning Still came back with the plan more rigid That’s grown pain, not punchline filler That’s locked jaw, not movie thriller That’s one man getting realer and realer Till the old fear looked unfamiliar If they count me out, let the count turn witness If they write me off, let the ink turn business I don’t chase loud, I chase distance I don’t fake healed, I build systems [Bridge — beat cuts, dry vocal] No sermon No choir No clean hands Still fire No rescue No stage Just pressure And age [Speed Run Verse — rapid-fire, controlled, 8 bars] I’m a pressure-built engine with a permanent rhythm Had a panic-run system, now I monitor friction Turned a private collision to a public precision Every syllable hitting like a debt got forgiven Got a pocket full of problems and a pattern to sort it Got a damaged little compass, but I still move toward it If the old me folded, the new me recorded Then cut that weakness where the fear got distorted No stumble, no mumble, no costume drama I juggle the trouble and study the trauma The karma got louder, the margin got smaller I still made structure from a broke-floor dollar Tick-tick, kick crack, chest tight, aim straight Quick shift, snare slap, no mask, same face Say it plain, old pain, new frame, locked gate Still here, still sharp, real cost, real weight [Final Hook — full drums, low doubled punch-ins] Say it plain I been low, I been late I been broke, I been brave I been wrong, I been changed Say it plain I don’t hide from the stain I don’t run from the weight I don’t smile for the pain Say it plain If it cost, I paid If it cracked, I stayed If I lost, I made [Outro — beat drops to 808 and synth] No costume No sermon Say it plain