Numbers on a Screen

[COLD OPEN – quiet, human, unprocessed] The money isn’t real. I never see it. I never hold it. It shows up Then disappears. Just numbers On a screen. --- [VERSE 1 – grounded, working-class] Alarm clock, steel-toe boots Coffee burnt, sky still blue Punch the time, sell the day Hope the numbers don’t betray I build it Lift it Drive it Fix it Break my back so it exists But what I earn don’t feel like mine It passes through me every time --- [CHORUS – simple, chantable] I work for numbers on a screen I sweat for something I don’t see Paid in promises and delays Rent due before my body heals I work for numbers on a screen They move fast I move slow If this is what I’m worth Why am I always broke? --- [PSA INTERLUDE – calm, managerial] Hard work pays off Over time Stay patient You’re doing great --- [VERSE 2 – sharper, accusatory] They say save They say wait They say grind They say faith But the price goes up The check stays thin Every raise gets eaten Before it kicks in Groceries climb Gas don’t care Doctor bills like punishment For getting hurt out there They say it’s complicated I say it’s rigged Funny how it works out For the people who don’t lift shit --- [PRE-CHORUS – spoken build] I don’t need charts I don’t need graphs I feel it every week When the math don’t math --- [CHORUS] I work for numbers on a screen I trade my time for make-believe They call it fair They call it free Feels like a trick Pulled on me I work for numbers on a screen Clock keeps moving So do I They say the system’s healthy Why am I barely alive? --- [PSA INTERLUDE – clipped, corporate] Rising costs are a global issue Your sacrifice is appreciated Please remember Employment is a privilege --- [BRIDGE – stripped, repetitive, human] I don’t want luxury I don’t want more Just don’t want to drown Doing honest work I don’t want millions I don’t want fame Just want the numbers To stop eating my name --- [BREAKDOWN – chant, floor-level] Same hours Less pay Every year Same lie Work harder Work smart Work yourself Out of time --- [VERSE 3 – direct, no theory] They say it’s strong From where they sit But strength don’t mean shit If you can’t feel it They say be grateful You’ve got a job Funny how survival Gets framed as a gift from God I don’t hate work I hate the deal Where my labor’s real But my pay ain’t real --- [FINAL CHORUS – full force] I work for numbers on a screen I break my body in between If money’s fake Then explain to me Why it controls everything I work for numbers on a screen Every promise wearing thin If this is the best it gets Don’t call it living --- [OUTRO – quiet, unresolved] Just numbers On a screen But my hands hurt For real.