[Start] [intro: Sparse piano and strings, private and tense] No fanfare, no practiced smile tonight No velvet words to make the old lies right They say my name like it belongs upstairs Pinned to a crest, then powdered into prayers [verse: Controlled opening, personal and restrained] I learned to curtsy, learned to hold my chin Learned how to lose so they could say I’d win A painted daughter in a gilded room A perfect answer stitched inside the gloom [pre-chorus: Pressure building, breath catching before release] But every step they mapped for me feels small Every “be still” just drives me through the wall If this is love, why does it close the door Why do I feel less mine than I was before [chorus: Big identity-claiming release, soaring soprano hook] There’s a girl named Nadia under all this gold Not the mask they polish, not the part I’m told She is quick and reckless, she is warm and wild She was there long before they called me royal child So hear me now, I’m done being what they need I am not a ribbon for a family creed Call me by the name that finally fits me right A girl named Nadia steps into the light [verse: More bite, clearer defiance, stronger forward motion] I’ve crossed through fear and came back with my own I’ve felt the ground and know where I am known Not by the guards or courtiers in line But by the pulse that says this life is mine I won’t be traded for a safer plan I won’t go quiet just to please a man You want a portrait hanging smooth and still I am the hand that tears it from the wall at will [pre-chorus: Stronger, less hesitant than the first] Let thunder shake the silver from the hall Let every lesson crack and lose its hold They can keep the crown if that’s the only role I would rather have my name and keep my soul [bridge: Stripped start, then aria-like rise into final chorus] If I must carry all their blood and blame Then let me be the first to choose my name Not as a secret, not behind a door Not half-alive and asking still for more [aria-rise: Soprano climbs with strings swelling underneath] I was not born to soften every truth I was not made to hand away my youth Look at me now: no bargain, no disguise This is my voice, and I will use my own life [chorus: Full orchestration, sustained belt, ensemble answers] There’s a girl named Nadia under all this gold Not the mask they polish, not the part I’m told She is quick and reckless, she is warm and wild She was there long before they called me royal child So hear me now, I’m done being what they need I am not a ribbon for a family creed Call me by the name that finally fits me right A girl named Nadia steps into the light [chorus: Bigger reprise, added background answers] There’s a girl named Nadia ... let her answer back [background-vocals:] (Nadia!) There’s a path before me and I’m taking that [background-vocals:] (Taking that!) I won’t live as costume, I won’t live as claim I will walk forward under my own name If the room goes cold, let it judge what it sees I would rather be myself than bend to please [outro: Firm, resolved, quieter final claim] No fanfare now No borrowed line Just Nadia And that is mine [End]
