[VERSE 1 — ESMÉ / CLOSE-MIC, LOW, BREATHY, ETHEREAL / NARROW STEREO] Remember the days I would make myself shrink trying not to take up too much room I didn’t know exactly where I was going I just knew I couldn’t stay where I was I still remember and it don’t hurt or sting Every road, every turn was part of my journey I’m speaking from a place of introspection I’ve been in the dark before And by far my biggest dub was crushing doubt at its core [PRE-HOOK — CHRIS / WARM, SMOKY, SOULFUL / DRUMS THIN] And you may be okay with all that but I had to bring my soul back to its tracks I couldn’t live becoming what the room required changing shape just to be admired I’d rather live so rooted in myself that what I carry might help somebody else Not changing for the world to understand me but becoming whole enough to contribute freely [HOOK — ESMÉ + CHRIS / DISTINCT CALL-AND-RESPONSE / WIDE HARMONIES] [ESMÉ — airy lead, floating head voice, delicate falsetto:] Rise with a simple word Rise without having to reword Rise and let yourself be heard right here in front of the world [CHRIS — warm chest voice, soulful and grounded:] Take your time take your turn Let them see what you’ve become [ESMÉ + CHRIS — layered, contrasting harmonies:] Every step every scar every dream brought you this far [ESMÉ — soaring falsetto:] This is your du-u-ub [CHRIS — low soulful response:] Your name, your sound, your love [BOTH — wide harmony:] This is your dub [VERSE 2 — CHRIS / FAST GRIME RAP / TIGHT 16THS / CLIPPED, CONFIDENT] Cut through the noise, no pause, no doubt, Had a war in my head, had to route that out, Too many voices tryna tell me what I’m about, Now I step in the room and I don’t fade out. Esmé on the high, Chris bringing that soul, Two different voices but they’re making me whole, One floats through the dark, one comes deep from the soul, Different colours, one message .. take control. I was low, I was lost, had my back to the wall, Kept shrinking myself just to fit for them all, Now I stand ten toes, let the old mask fall, If they don’t understand, that’s not my call. Biggest dub? I stopped running from me, Found the lock, found the key, found the person I’d be, Now I turn what I carry into something set free, If I made it through the dark, there’s a light you can see. [PRE-BRIDGE — CHRIS / SPOKEN-SUNG, LOW, BEHIND THE BEAT] I dubbed the rules I never chose Dubbed the need to fit their mold Turns out winning wasn’t fitting in it was finding what was always whole [BRIDGE — ESMÉ / WHISPERED, ETHEREAL, FLOATING / EXTREME STEREO] I learned to shiiiine inside first Then became a bea-ea-con for whoever needed light [CHRIS — WARM, EMOTIONAL, BUILDING] I stopped asking every shadow if I had the right to glo-o-ow Once I learned to trust the light in me I finally had some light to show [HOOK-HEIGHT — ESMÉ + CHRIS / WIDEST STEREO / EMOTIONAL] [ESMÉ — airy upper harmonies:] This is your du-u-ub [CHRIS — soulful lead:] not the noise not the name [BOTH — expanding harmony:] but the light you learned to carry before anybody knew your flame [CHRIS — grounded:] Not because you never fell not because the road was smooth [ESMÉ — floating response:] but because somewhere in the dark [BOTH:] you found your way back to you [POST-BRIDGE — ESMÉ + CHRIS / SPARSE COMMUNAL MANTRA] [ESMÉ — airy whisper:] Become. [CHRIS — warm response:] Contribute. [BOTH — unified:] Dub. [CHRIS:] Become who you are [ESMÉ:] Contribute what you carry [BOTH:] Let the win be bigger than the name they give you [OUTRO — ESMÉ / ETHEREAL FALSETTO + CHRIS / LOW SOULFUL HARMONY] [ESMÉ:] My first crown was peace of mind [CHRIS:] I learned to shine inside first [ESMÉ:] then became a beacon [BOTH — fading, layered harmonies:] for whoever needed light This is your dub [dub… dub… dub… dissolving across the room]
