Uh Uhm Yo My lil homie said, “Zen, why even do this shit?” I tell ’em, “I do it ’cause I’m tryna update my residence” He told me, “That’s evident, but be better then” Yuh Uhm Yuh, yuh I had to think, I thought too hard, then stopped to tie my shoes Seen the red and blue, what to do? Nothing, ’cause they rode past And shit, I had a baker’s dozen on my ass And that would’ve been my ass And all my dreams would’ve went up in smoke Yuck Uhm Uhm I learned young, every shortcut got a toll attached And if you scratch a back dont youll get yours scratched Every road I took had a story and a pothole crack Had to carry all my problems like a shoulder bag But I kept my head up even when the world was looking over that Funny how they judge you by the places that you started at Never ask about the nights you had to hustle just to make it back I was writing goals down, trying to make ’em facts Turning “one day” into “right now,” putting dates on that Uhm Yo Yo Uhm Uhm Homie said, “What you running from?” I said, “Nothing, I’m just running toward” Had a dream so big it barely fit behind a bedroom door Used to count my losses, now I’m counting what I’m building for Every scar became a chapter, every chapter made me want it more I remember being broke, wishing pockets had a little weight Now I treat an opportunity like dinner on a little plate Can’t afford to hesitate, time never give a minute late Life’ll put you at the intersection just to see which way you navigate I took the long route, learned patience from the road signs Had to separate the real advice from the old lies Everybody wanna eat when they see the whole pie But they wasn’t in the kitchen when I stayed up for the whole night Uhh Uhm yo Yuh Yuh Ok So if I tell ’em “keep going,” it ain’t coming from a movie I done had my own doubts trying hard to come and fool me Had to tell myself, “You either build or let it ruin” Now I’m putting every brick down like the future needs a blueprint My lil homie looked at me like, “Zen, you really serious?” I said, “I’m trying to turn the pain into something period” Not perfect, just persistent that’s the difference I don’t need a throne, I just need somewhere my family can sit in it Yo yo Uhm Uhm Yuh Yuh Okay So when I say I’m changing, I ain’t talking ’bout appearances I’m talking ’bout the mindset, the habits, the experiences Trying to update my residence, but really changing where my spirit lives Same kid with bigger dreams, just finally learning what commitment is And if the lights flash again, I’m keeping my composure Ain’t letting one bad moment write the ending to my closure I got too much on my mind and too much life left to discover So I told my lil homie, “If we fall, we learn and recover.” Then I laced my shoes up, looked around, and kept it moving Funny how a little pause can show you what you’re choosing Red and blue disappeared, but the lesson stayed with me: You can’t control the road ahead only what you do with every street.
