[Verse 1] Smiling mouth in a rotting head Pearl-white teeth on a funeral bed I learned my tale from a broken saint He fed me fire, then said stay faint Sucking dry the teat of the scared We were born where the old snakes glared A storytelling breed, we are Knife-edge tongues and a tracked-out scar [Pre-Chorus] A starving crew with show-off toys Gold on the hands, but the gut still void Fear in your chest like a borrowed crown You lift it up, or you let it drown [Chorus] Fear is a choice You wear it well Fear is a choice Ring the old bell Fear is a choice So taste that flame Fear is a choice And speak your name (speak your name) [Verse 2] We parade through the mold and dust Clap for the lie, then call it trust A grin that cracks when the torch burns near A hungry laugh for the scavenged years You keep your luck in a rusted box You keep your heart where the coffin locks But every fool with a velvet pose Bleeds the same when the curtain folds [Pre-Chorus] A starving crew with show-off toys Bang those cups, make your broken noise Fear in your throat like a locked-up gate Open it once, and you rewrite fate [Chorus] Fear is a choice You wear it well Fear is a choice Ring the old bell Fear is a choice So taste that flame Fear is a choice And speak your name (speak your name) [Bridge] I saw kings in a butcher line Saw saints with smoke in their eyes Saw the brave ones kneel to the shade Then rise with the bite they made So if the dark comes asking for bread Let it find teeth, not a lowered head Let it hear that story breathe From the bone-deep mouth of the desperate breed [Final Chorus] Fear is a choice You wear it well Fear is a choice Ring the old bell Fear is a choice So taste that flame Fear is a choice And speak your name (speak your name) Fear is a choice No chain can stay Fear is a choice We carve the way
