[Verse 1: The Ugly Duckling] He started from nothing, an ugly young duckling, The block was a jungle, his knuckles were buckling. A skinny black kid in a neighborhood cold, Where stories are tragic and nobody’s old. They laughed at his sneakers, they mocked how he spoke, To the kids on the corner, his life was a joke. They pushed him in lockers, they bruised up his chin, They told him he’s broken, he’s never gonna win. Every step to the school was a walk through the fire, Just drowning in shadows and swimming in mire. He took all the beatings, he swallowed the dirt, But deep in his silence, he weaponized hurt. [Chorus] The boy was lifting, the boy was climbing. The boy was shifting, the boy was grinding. Back and forth, side to side, moving weight but keeping it clean, The quietest monster this city had seen. Yeah, the boy was building, the boy was rising. While they were joking, he was realizing: You conquer the dark when you harness the pain. Now look at the boy—he is breaking the chain. [Verse 2: The Grind & The Flaws] He hit up the gym when the city went dark, Just pull-ups and push-ups alone in the park. Building the armor, protecting his peace, While bullies were dodging the local police. He didn't do gangs and he didn’t do crime, He kept it legit while he counted his dimes. He studied the streets, he was reading the law, A tactical mind pulling strength from a flaw. He bought and he sold, and he flipped and he stacked, While haters were sleeping, his bags had been packed. They spat on his name, tried to bury his spark, But a ghost of the ghetto sees best in the dark. [Chorus] ‘Cause the boy was lifting, the boy was climbing. The boy was shifting, the boy was grinding. Back and forth, side to side, moving weight but keeping it clean, The hardest worker that the neighborhood had ever seen. Yeah, the boy was building, the boy was rising. While they were joking, he was realizing: You conquer the dark when you harness the pain. Now look at the boy—he is breaking the chain. [Verse 3: The Ascent & The Aftermath] Now look at him walk—got the weight of a stone, He bought up the block that he walked on alone. He’s throwing out lifelines, he’s feeding the street, Putting clothes on the kids, putting shoes on their feet. But the dynamic shifted, the table has turned, The lessons were brutal, the respect has been earned. Some look at him shaking, they cross to the right, They remember the kid they beat up in the night. They lower their eyes, yeah, they step out his way, Terrified of the debt that they think they should pay. And some give a nod to the quietest man, Who walked through the inferno and finished the plan. [Outro] No vengeance, no violence. He won through the grind. He left all the cowards and losers behind. From the dirt to the sky, out of misery's grip, He didn't just conquer, he altered the script. Yeah. The boy was lifting. The kid they all buried is bringing the light.
