[Verse 1]

He ain’t never seen no changes - no new opportunities

Ideas stay contagious but still his worth is hard to see

Spent his life bein’ told he’s gonna do great things

But he’ll prolly grow old, never really find his wings

Maybe they ain’t wrong - he’s got some gifts for sure

But a brain don’t make him strong, good job ain’t got worth

Without some struggle to show him the way through his life

Without some hunger to keep him goin’ through strife

Look I ain’t talkin’ ‘bout the wages or all these metal cages

Protectin’ him from the rages of the dangers

They just leadin’ him to some majors

If y’all was makin’ wagers he’s comin’ back the next day

Just makin’ different observations

Never seein’ any changes

Man I gotta think his life would get old

More than ever when the days get cold, and he’s told

He’s doin’ good - but all he’s seein’ is that house down the road

Not supposed to worry about them - that ain’t his part of this world

Nah, they keep him busy at home

Doin’ work to get marked up, smart stuff on his phone

But he never hears a new tone, nobody asks him what’s wrong

No problems here last long, less it’s who brad tried to bone

That’s not acceptable here

But promoting the fear of people different than them?

How many years has that dude spent on the edge of the road

Askin’ for two dozen cents out the millions he owns

Him and his white picket fence

They thought they worked the game, made their world the best for his kids

But they just stopped the change, made their world the next for his kids

He’ll get his house in the suburbs, keep away from the world

Of all them inner city clubbers and hungry little girls

They’ll never see the potential in life without their money

Won’t have any friends who’ll jump in the whip, hit the town, and chase some honeys

The eventful man is running he sees that the game is won

He knows eventually he gon’ have some homies till his life is done

[Verse 2]

But he’s still ain’t never seen no changes - this world is so cold

Life never rearranges - “we’re doin better” he’s told

He looks out his bedroom window, then back down at the floor

Turns and looks through one room, and he can see the front door

Wakin’ up every day, sees the skies are grey

And he’s cold, crossin’ the block, wishin’ winter would go away

Later that day, find’s everybody’s gone

So he sits awake and wonders what’s takin’ mama so long

And while he’s there on his bed, feelin’ so much dread in his head

He wonders why it’s so easy for everyone to get fed

Except him, and his friends, and everybody like them

“I’m ok,” his mama says, but she’s working herself dead

There’s never really the question in the back of his mind

Where is he goin’ in life, where to dedicate his time

But with his brothers he works hard to find

A meaning in the struggle a reading in the bible, they’re leaning on the bubble

Of an uncertain future

Always lookin’ for somethin’ new, lurkin’ behind

Admirin’ the lives of the chosen few

Workin’ every day to secure his next dime

He’s tryin’ to stay strong even though he cries sometimes

This is the life of a kid with lots of opportunity

Comin’ up from so low, so much room to succeed

But when I listen to his story, it ain’t easy to read

And who am I to tell it? I have everything I need

I can sit here and wonder why I was born where I was

Easy for me to be pissed that I’ll never have the life he does

I mean what do I say to him if I ever succeed

Yeah, I came from the top, but you should still respect me?

Oh sure, yeah, try that, godspeed

But my stress will never compare to livin’ on the street

You could say my life is hard, I might live most of it alone

But my story should stay hidden when there’s people without a home