survival mode [Intro — spoken, low] Yeah… Everybody asks, “You good?” You learn the answer pretty quick. Smile. “Nah, I'm good, bro.” Keep moving. [Verse 1] I smile when I see you, shake your hand like nothing's wrong, laugh at all your stories while I'm barely holding on. Got a storm behind my eyes, but I keep the thunder quiet, everybody loves the strong man till they see the fear inside him. Bills stacked on the table, phone keeps ringing all night, Mama says, “You sound tired,” I say, “Nah, I'm alright.” Another day, another dollar, another piece I gotta hide, I got good at looking normal while I'm breaking up inside. [Pre-Chorus — half sung] Don't ask me how I'm doing, you might see behind the mask, I've been running from tomorrow while pretending I'm relaxed. [Chorus — melodic hook] I'm in survival mode, smiling like I'm bulletproof, telling everybody I'm okay when I don't know what else to do. I'm in survival mode, one more day, one more road, if you see me laughing with my friends, just know I'm carrying a load. I'm still here… Yeah, I'm still here… That's all I know. [Verse 2 — tighter rap flow] I know how to make a joke when my chest feels like a cage, know how to change the subject when somebody sees my face. I know how to say “I'm fine,” I know how to disappear, I know how to hold somebody while I'm drowning in my fear. Everybody needs something, so I make myself available, carry everybody's problems like my back is indestructible. But when the room gets empty and the city starts to sleep, that's when all the noise gets loud and the silence cuts too deep. No applause for surviving, no trophy for getting through, just another morning waiting with another thing to do. [Chorus] I'm in survival mode, smiling like I'm bulletproof, telling everybody I'm okay when I don't know what else to do. I'm in survival mode, one more day, one more road, if you see me laughing with my friends, just know I'm carrying a load. [Bridge — stripped back, spoken] Maybe that's the hardest part… Nobody knows. You can sit at a table with people who love you and still feel completely alone. You laugh. You listen. You say, “I'm good.” Then you go home… and finally take the mask off. [Final Chorus — bigger, emotional] I'm in survival mode, but I'm breathing, so I stay, maybe I don't need the answers, maybe I just need one more day. I'm in survival mode, and the road is getting cold, but if I can smile through the darkness, maybe someday I'll let somebody know. I'm still here… Yeah, I'm still here… Not okay… But I'm still here. [Outro — whispered] So if I smile when you see me… don't always believe the smile. Sometimes that's just survival. Production: 82–88 BPM, minor-key piano, deep sub-bass, dusty boom-bap/trap drums, distant city ambience, and a warm but slightly cracked sung hook. Keep the verses fairly dry and intimate, then let the chorus widen with layered vocals. The key is the beat sounds controlled while the lyrics reveal someone barely holding it together.
