VERSE 1 There's a kid in a small town, nothing but a dream A guitar on both shoulders and a heart that has to sing They told us sit down quiet, told us play it safe But we packed up every heartbeat and we found our way to the stage PRE-CHORUS We have walked through darkness just to bring each other light Every stage we ever stood on was a reason and a right CHORUS So act out, act up, let your whole soul show Let the music move us somewhere they don't want us to go Raise your voice, raise your light, this is our parade Come on everybody, we're bringing our country to center stage Come on everybody, bringing our country to center stage VERSE 2 There's an artist in the spotlight who walked away today They offered us the money but they couldn't make us stay There's a comedian still laughing through the fire and the pain There's a playwright in a basement writing truth into the rain There's a director in a black box with fifteen souls and a dream There's a singer on a corner making strangers stop and see PRE-CHORUS We have given everything to hold this fragile line This stage was built for all of us and we remind them every time CHORUS So act out, act up, let your whole soul show Let the music move us somewhere they don't want us to go Raise your voice, raise your light, this is our parade Come on everybody, we're bringing our country to center stage Come on everybody, bringing our country to center stage BRIDGE (slow it down, raw and aching) We have been the dreamers We have been the fools We have been the fearless ones Who played by nobody's rules Every song worth singing Was born from something real And everything we stood up for Is something we still feel So we rise So we rise So we rise FINAL CHORUS (full gospel, wall of sound) Act out, act up, let your whole soul show Let the music move us somewhere they don't want us to go Raise your voice, raise your light, this is our parade Come on everybody, we're bringing our country to center stage Act out, act up, the curtain's going up Every broken dreamer, every soul that's had enough This is our moment, this is our crusade Come on everybody, we're bringing our country to center stage Come on everybody, bringing our country to center stage OUTRO (spoken, whispered over fading chords) The stage was always ours. It always has been. Act out. Act up. Together.
