[Intro – dry acoustic guitar, finger noise, close raw provided voice reference, half-spoken] Dust in my mouth. Rain on my shoes. Old strings talking like they got bad news. Still got breath. Still got less. Still got gravel in my chest. [Verse 1 – raw close-mic lead vocal, gritty and smoky, half-sung half-spoken] I don’t sing clean. Never said I could. Got a hard little sound where the soft one stood. Got dirt in the words, got smoke in the bone. Got a bad road voice that won’t leave me alone. I kept my sins in a coat by the door. Put my name on the table, then I asked for more. Now every little truth comes up rough. I tried to bury it once. Wasn’t deep enough. [Chorus 1 – sliding drill sub-bass enters stronger, acoustic guitar stays dry] I got gravel in my chest. Dust under my tongue. I don’t sing clean, but I still sing on. I got smoke in my breath. Night in my hands. A low black sound that still understands. No shine. No rest. Just gravel in my chest. [Verse 2 – colder urban imagery, same raw voice, slightly more rhythmic but not rap] Streetlight cuts through the cold black rain. Concrete hums with a metal pain. My shadow walks like it knows my debt. Every step says: not done yet. There’s bass in the floor and rust in the air. There’s a prayer gone bad, but I don’t go there. I keep my head down. I keep moving slow. Some roads don’t end. They just learn your soul. [Chorus 2 – heavier drill pressure, same hook, no polished vocal] I got gravel in my chest. Dust under my tongue. I don’t sing clean, but I still sing on. I got smoke in my breath. Night in my hands. A low black sound that still understands. No shine. No rest. Just gravel in my chest. [Guitar Break – short dirty acoustic guitar phrase over cold drill beat, no extended solo, no vocals] [Bridge – reduced, almost spoken, very close voice] I don’t want gold. I don’t want grace. I don’t need light on my face. I don’t sing pretty. I don’t sing new. I only sing what made it through. [Final Chorus – fullest raw hook, acoustic guitar and sliding sub-bass, same provided voice reference lead] I got gravel in my chest. Dust under my tongue. I don’t sing clean, but I still sing on. I got smoke in my breath. Night in my hands. A low black sound that still understands. I got gravel in my chest. Weight in my name. A voice full of dirt and a mouth full of flame. No shine. No rest. Still got gravel in my chest. [Outro – short dry ending, guitar scrape, breath, bass tail] Dust in my mouth. Rain on my shoes. Still got breath. Still got gravel in my chest.
