[Intro] Happy birthday to you Guess we made it, that’s true Another candle, more proof That I’m running out of youth (yeah) [Verse 1] Happy birthday to me, I ain’t feeling that great Every wish on the cake tastes like old mistakes Every year that I age, that’s a higher stake Every smile in the frame got a hidden ache Phone full of people that I don’t text back Whole lot of “let’s link” that I let go black Old friends, new ghosts, in the group chat stack They clap on my page, then they fade right back Mama say “be proud, you still here, my son” I’m just counting all the things that I still ain’t done Had a crush I never told, now she raising one Got a job I kinda hate but it pays that sum Why we singing like it sweet when the clock so loud Putting sugar on the fear, pass it round the crowd Everybody yelling “toast,” tryna drown me out I be laughing on the couch with a quiet doubt Every year is a mirror, I don’t like that view All the chances that I dropped, all the times I withdrew Started songs I never finished, goals I never pursued But the world say “smile,” so I lie on cue [Chorus] Happy birthday to you Even when it cuts through Another year, same wounds Same weight in this same room Happy birthday to me Guess I made it, we’ll see Blow the flame, breathe the truth Every wish feels like proof We’re just One more year closer One more year closer Happy birthday to you (one more year closer) While the clock gets colder [Verse 2] Paper plates on the table, fake gold that bends Plastic knives, cheap forks, yeah, that’s like my friends Pretty shine in the light, then it snaps, that’s the end Said “forever” on a night, now we strangers again I’ve been scrolling through my photos like a autopsy Watching younger versions of me that still got dreams He ain’t know that the rent eat the big plans clean He ain’t know that the fear live behind routines Thirty candles on the cake, that’s a soft red flag I ain’t built that house, still inside this flat Parents asking when I’m “finally” gon’ fix my path I just pour another drink, let the questions pass Why we celebrate inches to the finish line? Dress it up with balloons, call the dread “good times” Cut a slice of the dread, let my friends all dine Sing loud so we don’t hear when the clock chimes I’m afraid of the mirror, not the grave so much Scared I’ll die in my skin never truly touched By the life that I wanted, by the art I trust So I’m burning every year tryna feel that rush [Chorus] Happy birthday to you Even when it cuts through Another year, same wounds Same weight in this same room Happy birthday to me Guess I made it, we’ll see Blow the flame, breathe the truth Every wish feels like proof We’re just One more year closer One more year closer Happy birthday to you (one more year closer) While the clock gets colder [Bridge] Do I fear the coffin Or the life I soften All the days I offered Up to doubt and doctrine If I change tomorrow Will it steal this sorrow Or do I just borrow Hope I can’t afford [Verse 3] Fast thoughts, fast flow, heart slow, can’t rest Timeline full of wins, I compare, get pressed Everybody “up now,” everybody “so blessed” I’m just older in the mirror with the same old mess “Make a speech, say something,” they hand me the floor Guess I’m s’posed to be grateful just for one year more I been breathing through a war that they can’t explore So I clink my glass, act like I’m not sore “To another good year,” that’s the classic line But I’m thinking, “Will I even let this next year shine?” Am I brave enough to cut out every toxic tie? Will I finally chase the thing that I feel is alright [Bridge] Do I fear the coffin Or the life I soften All the days I offered Up to doubt and doctrine If I change tomorrow Will it steal this sorrow Or do I just borrow Hope I can’t afford [Chorus] Happy birthday to you Even when it cuts through Another year, same wounds Same weight in this same room Happy birthday to me Guess I made it, we’ll see Blow the flame, breathe the truth Every wish feels like proof We’re just One more year closer One more year closer Happy birthday to you (one more year closer) While the clock gets colder
