Dreams

{Line}

Woke up for school back in 2000,

Still a little kid, ain't know what life was 'bout yet.

Watched Dan die, couldn't understand death,

Then the Twin Towers fell in 2001—what the fuck was next?

Few years later, then we lost Big Earl,

Switched schools, switched my life, switched my whole world.

Then we lost Grandpa Bob, watched my grandmother cry,

Lost her in '08, another piece of me died.

Then my dad went Army, watched his brothers die,

Another generation learnin' how to bury shit inside.

Me and moms had problems, she kicked me out,

Young as fuck, nowhere to go, had to figure shit out.

I dreamed I'd make it out of the hood,

But my whole damn neighborhood showed me love.

Gave me a dream bigger than what I could see,

Made me believe I could make it to university.

Funny how the place I was tryna escape

Built the motherfucker that I am today.

Every death, every loss, every door that closed,

Put another fuckin' mile on this road.

Now I write this shit so the kids after me

Know the hood ain't gotta be their whole destiny.

You can come from the bottom, still plant them seeds,

Give the next generation something better to believe.

 

{Chorus}

I had a dream I'd make it out someday,

Through all the people that I lost along the way.

From a little kid just tryna find his place,

To a grown man still carryin' every name.

I had a dream, even when life got rough,

When the world showed me pain, my hood showed me love.

And if I make it, they all comin' with me,

'Cause every motherfucker I lost built a piece of me.

 

{Line}

Sometimes I pray for better days,

Then my aunt died from AIDS.

Life got dark like the ace of spades,

Still somehow God kept me safe.

Spared my life, but I wasn't prepared

For my first kid, shit, I was scared.

Had to learn how to be a dad on the fly,

While still learnin' how to deal with my own life.

Seen so many dark days, I remember that shit,

Now I use 'em as a benchmark for my kids.

If they never gotta struggle the way that I did,

Then every fucked-up thing I went through was worth it.

I ain't gotta be perfect, just better than before,

Give 'em everything I used to wish for.

Make sure when they fall, they know I'm still there,

'Cause I know what it's like when nobody cared.

All them losses taught me what time really means,

How quick somebody you love turn into a memory.

So I ain't chasin' a life that just look good to see,

I'm tryna leave my kids something better than me.

 

{Chorus}

I had a dream I'd make it out someday,

Through all the people that I lost along the way.

From a little kid just tryna find his place,

To a grown man still carryin' every name.

I had a dream, even when life got rough,

When the world showed me pain, my hood showed me love.

And if I make it, they all comin' with me,

'Cause every motherfucker I lost built a piece of me.