I’ve never been a rich kid; I’m glad I can say that

Parents have debt they have to add up to pay back

But I benefit from never havin’ a Maybach

I remember feelin’ very affluent way back

As a young kid when the money felt bigger

Havin’ 5 dollars kinda felt like five figures

And I thought that I could buy an entire aisle at Best Buy, yeah

But is that the best idea?

I wanted the new toy or game on the shelf

Seeking the fleeting joy that came from the wealth

They mass market products and exploit cheap labor

To make toys we forget about a week later

And we didn’t even like ‘em that much when we bought ‘em

But we had to have it ‘cause our neighbors just got ‘em

Listen to the melody, money it ain’t the enemy

But it just ain’t the remedy, damn it I know I’ll never be

[Chorus: Lorde]

And we’ll never be Royals (Royals)

It don’t run in our blood

That kind of luck’s just ain’t for us

We crave a different kind of buzz

Let me be your ruler (ruler)

You can call me queen bee

And baby I’ll rule

Let me live that fantasy

Hip-hop has a history of glorifying riches

It evolved in response to impoverished conditions

And as kid hearing the message I didn’t get it

Not something I experienced but Jay-Z said it

“If you grew up with holes in your zapatos

You'd celebrate the minute you was havin’ dough”

So while some rappers focus on material concepts

You can’t rob people of historical context

And I’m next in the line of those who co-opt flows

Hop to shows, rock the clothes but do not know

What’s it’s like lookin’ down the barrel of a firehose

What’s like calling one room your entire home

So who am I to complain, it’s madness

My high school was underfunded but we still had classes

They taught me facts so I learned to stay true and

And be a humble man too, like my friend Andrew

Right Drew? You gotta know what it takes to succeed

We don’t have to be royals, we have what we need

[Chorus]