Pass It On

[G Rate | Male Rap Lead | Tough Love Voice | Hard-Won Wisdom, no aggression, just directness | Clipped Half-Spoken Delivery] [Smooth | Male Melodic Voice | Tender Address | Warm Vulnerability | Sustained Half-Sung Phrasing] [Intro | G Rate] [Sparse Acoustic Guitar, Single Soft Chord] Yo... young blood... let me holla at you for a second. [Verse 1 | G Rate] [Clipped, Direct, Sincere] I see you on the corner where I used to stand Same fire in your eyes, same restless hand World gon' tell you slow down, world gon' tell you wait But I know that feeling, I know that kind of weight I ain't here to tell you it's gon' be easy I ain't here to tell you the block won't test you, squeeze you But I got a few things that took me years to learn Sit with me a minute, let me pass you what I earned [Hook | Smooth] [Soft, Intimate, Half-Spoken Half-Sung] Pass it on, pass it on Everything I carried, carry it along Pass it on, pass it on The block gave it to me, now it's yours — pass it on [Verse 2 | Smooth] [Warm, Tender, Vulnerable] Patience ain't the absence of the fire in your chest It's knowin' when to move and when to let it rest Love ain't always loud, sometimes it's just a hand Sometimes it's just showin' up, sometimes just a stand Truth is heavier than any chain you wear Wear it anyway, 'cause the lie ain't worth the care This whole record been a map of where I been Take what's useful, leave the rest, then start again [Hook | Smooth] repeat [Bridge | G Rate] [Quiet, Vulnerable, Direct] I called it a concrete testament 'cause that's what it was Every crack, every corner, every scar, every because But testaments are only good if somebody reads 'em So I'm handin' you the pages, I'm handin' you the reason [Verse 3 | G Rate | Smooth] [Trading, Building Toward Farewell] [G Rate] So take the arcade lessons, take the boulevard nights [Smooth] Take the ballot, take the chamber, take the fights [G Rate] Take the mother's sacrifice, take the daisy in the crack [Smooth] Take whatever helped me forward, leave the rest of it back [Both] I ain't gon' always be the one who's standin' here So I'm sayin' it now, plain and clear This the last thing that I'm leavin' in the song Everything I had was never mine that long [Hook | Smooth, quietest, final] repeat [Outro | G Rate | Smooth] [Guitar Fades to a Single Note, Then Silence] [G Rate] Go on now. [Smooth] Pass it on.