Algorithm Blues

By Madd Hatter

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[Verse 1]

My phone know me better than friends do

Feed know my mood before I even do

Scroll for a hit, brain beggin' for proof

Echoes reply like “we muted you”

Every post feel like throwin’ a bottle

Hope it hits shore but it sinks full-throttle

I'm broke on rent, still flex my motto

“Stay sane, stay kind”—yeah that's hollow

Serotonin low, I keep tappin’ for more

Dopamine drip on a dried-out floor

People scroll past like I'm decor

I speak, they swipe, what I stand for ignored

Tryna talk real, algorithm say nah

Truth get taxed while the fake get spa

Play the fool just to dodge the law

Smile for the feed with a digital jaw


[Chorus 1]

I got the algorithm blues

Nothin' I post gets through

Talk to a void that moves

Like it knows what I can't prove

Scrollin' for signs of life

Same four ads all night

Guess I'm just not the type

The code decides is right (not right)


[Verse 2]

My feed flash raids like midnight news

ICE lights blue on a mother's shoes

Next swipe — smiles, white-picket views

Kids in pools while the sirens bruise

They sip slow while the headlines fade

Caption the sky like it's lemonade

Power dress clean in a polished shade

Sellin’ “freedom” that they’ve already made

They track my eyes, my tone, my scroll

Flag my speech, then call it patrol

Law in the code, control in the role

Fear in the font of the terms they stole

I see two worlds in a single feed (feed)

One takes, one never bleeds (bleeds)

One posts joy they don't need

One fights just to breathe and plead


[Chorus 2]

I got the algorithm blues (oh)

Keep refreshin’ bad news (oh)

Truth get lost in views (no)

While the system choose who's new (oh)

Scrollin' for signs of care (care)

But comfort fills the air (air)

Guess I'm shoutin’ prayers (yeah)

To a screen that doesn't share


[Verse 3]

My feed show Gaza — kids in smoke

Theirs show gossip, inside jokes

I'm watchin' ashes, full-force genocide

They see rehashes of why Brad pushed Jen aside

Stories loop from bombs to brunch

Filters on fire, truth out to lunch

Crowds laugh loud when a comic bombs

Crowds go quiet when the real ones gone

Both called killin', both get on

Just different stages, same applause drawn

Some see Fashionistas, I see fascist leaders

Pose with power while they pass the meters

Anti-vaccines while pro-tests bleed

Tear-gas clouds what the ads won't feed

Same crowd cheer when the market snaps

Mute the wars, but boost the apps

Travel bans while the travel brands post

“Wanderlust” tags from a bombed-out coast

AIPAC hands on the gov they run

Eight-packs flex as the summer come

Weaponized starvation, intermittent fasting

Hashtags spin while the world's collapsing

They sip cold brew while the streets stay blazing

Two different feeds, same app raising


[Chorus 3]

I got the algorithm blues

But I'm done beggin' for views

Keep your filters in queue

I just want the kids to make it through

If love don't sell, I'll post it free

No sponsor, no brand — just me

Let the numbers fall where they be

I don't need reach, I just need peace