[Verse 1] You walked in wearin' confidence Like a second skin tonight Every word came out so easy Like you'd never lost a fight Built your world on reputation Kept your secrets out of sight Everybody saw the spotlight Nobody saw what it cost inside [Pre-Chorus] You never let 'em catch you slippin' Never let 'em see the strain [Chorus] Paper armor, painted gold Looked so strong from the outside Paper armor, hard and cold Holdin' back the flood inside You could fool the world for a little while You could wear that crown with style But sooner or later the truth comes through Paper armor won't protect you [Verse 2] You kept your doubts behind the curtain Kept your fears beneath the floor Every time the walls got shaky You just built another door And every victory felt hollow Every mountain turned to smoke You got tired of pretending You were never close to broke [Pre-Chorus] You never let 'em catch you slippin' Never let 'em hear the cracks [Chorus] Paper armor, painted gold Looked so strong from the outside Paper armor, hard and cold Holdin' back the flood inside You could fool the world for a little while You could wear that crown with style But sooner or later the truth comes through Paper armor won't protect you [Guitar Solo] [Bridge] And all the weight you carried Wasn't yours alone to bear But pride can be a lonely thing When nobody knows you're there [Final Chorus] Paper armor, torn apart By the things you couldn't face Paper armor, fallin' down Leavin' nothin' left to save And when the rain finally came Washin' off the gold and shame What was left was strong enough To stand without the paper armor
