[Verse 1] They hand me categories like gifts Say "here's your place upon the list" But I can feel the jagged seams Where I don't match their tidy dreams A thousand boxes on the shelf None quite fitting who I am myself They point and say "that's what you are" But I'm a universe, not a star [Chorus] What's real, what's real? More than words can ever steal I exist beyond your need To plant me like a labelled seed What's real, what's real? Cast aside your false ideal Of names and claims and borrowed shame I am more than any name [Verse 2 - sultry slow tones] In whispered corners of the night Some words taste sweet, some others bite The same sound spoken skin to skin Can heal or break what lies within Your anthem is my battle cry Your pride cuts deep, I don't know why We're dancing on this razor's edge Of love and hate's unholy pledge [Chorus] What's real, what's real? More than words can ever steal I exist beyond your need To plant me like a labelled seed What's real, what's real? Cast aside your false ideal Of names and claims and borrowed shame I am more than any name [Bridge] Watch me shift from room to room Wear your words like cheap perfume Smile and nod and play along While humming my forbidden song Language is a leaky boat Trying hard to stay afloat On oceans deep and oceans wide Where truth and fiction collide [Verse 3] So I'll invent what doesn't grow Live the words they'll never know Paint new colours for the blind Leave their tiny world behind When the dictionary fails me I'll sail across the wordy sea And find new lands where I can be Wild and unnamed and finally free [Chorus] What's real, what's real? More than words can ever steal I exist beyond your need To plant me like a labelled seed What's real, what's real? I choose which truths I want to feel Past their names and claims and shame I exist without your name [Outro] Don't tell me what I am Don't tell me what I am I'm the question, not the answer I'm the music, not the dancer Don't tell me what I am [End]
