Omie Wise (Traditional - Reimagined)

[Voice: Male bari-tenor, G2–E4. Warm, weathered Appalachian storyteller; intimate, mournful, and restrained. Traditional passages should feel ancient and narrative; rap sections conversational, reflective, and increasingly accusatory.] [Verse 1] Come all you pretty fair maids, And listen to my song. I'll tell you of poor Omie Wise, And how she came to wrong. [Verse 2] Omie was a pretty girl, As pretty as could be. John Lewis came to court her, And promised marriage she would see. [Chorus] Oh, Omie Wise, Omie Wise, Your story still remains. A promise made beneath the moon Can turn to sorrow, lies, and shame. [Verse 3] He said, “Come go with me, Omie, We'll travel down the road. I'll take you to my mother's house, And there we'll make our home.” She followed him beside the stream, Believing what he said. But something in his eyes had changed, And fear began to spread. [Rap 1 — quiet, ominous] That's how the story starts sometimes. Not with a warning. Not with a weapon. With a promise. “I'll take care of you.” “I'll make you my wife.” “Come on, trust me.” Words are cheap When someone's already decided They don't have to keep them. She wasn't foolish for believing him. She was human. She trusted the future He put in front of her. And when the future changed, He didn't change with it. [Verse 4] “Oh John, dear John, don't leave me here, For I am with child.” He answered coldly, “Omie dear, You know I never loved you.” [Verse 5] She pleaded with him not to go. She begged him to remain. But John Lewis took her by the hand And led her toward the plain. [Chorus] Oh, Omie Wise, Omie Wise, Your story still remains. A promise made beneath the moon Can turn to sorrow, lies, and shame. [Rap 2 — darker] There's the moment right there. The moment when a promise Becomes a sentence. She knows. He knows. And neither one can pretend anymore. A child on the way. A future he doesn't want. A woman asking for mercy From the man who swore she'd have his love. He didn't just break his word. He decided her life was inconvenient. That's when betrayal becomes something darker Than heartbreak. [Verse 6] He pushed poor Omie in the stream And watched her struggle there. She cried, “Oh John, don't murder me, For God will hear my prayer.” [Verse 7] He turned and walked away from her. He left her there to drown. The river carried Omie's body Till someone found her down. [Bridge — mournful] The water kept on running. The trees stood dark and still. One man carried out a secret That would follow where he went. [Rap 3 — building] But secrets don't stay buried Just because you bury them. The river remembers. The town remembers. The people who heard the story Remember. And maybe that's why these old songs survive. Not because we're fascinated by murder. Because somebody has to remember The person who didn't get to tell their side. Omie gets the last word now Every time somebody sings her name. [Verse 8] John Lewis was arrested And taken to the jail. He tried to hide behind his lies, But truth would not grow pale. [Verse 9] Some say he died with no remorse. Some say he begged for grace. But Omie's name outlived his own, And time remembered her face. [Final Chorus] Oh, Omie Wise, Omie Wise, Your story still remains. A promise made beneath the moon Can turn to sorrow, lies, and shame. Oh, Omie Wise, Omie Wise, The river knows your name. The years may change the words we sing, But they cannot wash away the pain. [Outro — quiet] The river keeps on running. The old hills keep their time. And every time they sing of Omie, She lives between the lines.