[Intro – Spoken] Yeah… Hawthorn Estate, late 90s… Grey skies, cold nights, warm laughs… We had nothing, but it still felt like everything. [Verse 1] Grew up in block 3, Hawthorn Estate, Mum at the Co-Op, dad workin’ late, Flats by the corner of Brambleton Road, Where the lift broke down and the stairs always froze. Summer on the green with Kev and Ray, Jamal, Big Luke, little Mikey Gray, Playing Wembley Singles ‘til the streetlights flashed, Then runnin’ to the shop for a 10p stash. After school — Fun House, Blue Peter, bare hype, Then Mega Drive missions on Streets of Rage nights, Craigie lost his brother in ‘95, moved out, That’s when Deano rolled in with the loud mouth. [Hook] Hawthorn dreams, we were kings in the rain, From the loss to the laughs to the blocks and pain, First loves, first fights, names carved in the wall, We had nothin’ but we still had it all. Yeah — Hawthorn dreams, still run through my veins, From the court to the chip shop, memories remain, From the cold, hard nights to the bright arcade, Them 90s days, bruv, I’d never trade. [Verse 2] Kelly from block 6 had the wildest laugh, Gave her my Walkman, we split the tracks, Then two weeks later she’s with Dean from the flats, I’m back with the mandem, just spitting old raps. School at Woodbridge, fights in the yard, Miss Clarke moving like she runtin’ it hard, But the playground was ours ‘til the dinner bell rang, Bag of Space Raiders, can of Tizer in hand. Nights down at Crossfield Lane on the bench, Talkin’ ‘bout life with the cold air stench, Kev dreamed of a Beemer, Ray wanted a Benz, Me? I just wanted to make it out with my friends. [Hook] Hawthorn dreams, we were kings in the rain, From the loss to the laughs to the blocks and pain, First loves, first fights, names carved in the wall, We had nothin’ but we still had it all. Yeah — Hawthorn dreams, still run through my veins, From the court to the chip shop, memories remain, From the cold, hard nights to the bright arcade, Them 90s days, bruv, I’d never trade. [Bridge – Spoken] The estate had its own rhythm… Sirens in the night, dogs barkin’ at shadows, Chip shop grease mixing with the rain… And somehow, it all felt like home. [Verse 3] By sixteen, I’d seen faces fade, Luke got nicked, Jamal went straight, Ray joined the Army, Kev moved north, Kelly’s on Facebook now — twice divorced. Still walk Hawthorn when I pass that way, Same graffiti, just more decay, But I hear our laughs in the rusted swings, And the beat still drops when the ice cream rings. So I spit these bars for the crew we were, For the dreams we had, and the ends we stirred, Cos we built somethin’ that money can’t buy, A 90s Essex youth under concrete skies. [Hook – Outro] Hawthorn dreams, we were kings in the rain, From the loss to the laughs to the blocks and pain, First loves, first fights, names carved in the wall, We had nothin’ but we still had it all. Yeah — Hawthorn dreams, still run through my veins, From the court to the chip shop, memories remain, From the cold, hard nights to the bright arcade, Them 90s days, bruv, I’d never trade.
