Whether I fight the power, or build towers, my time's ticking
Our lives are worth the same as a Muslim or a Christian
Black Lives Matter, but do they matter to most
I reflect in the mirror, but can't stop thinking about the ghosts
Of my ancestors, I am blessed up
Think about my transgressions from my time as an adolescent
It all started with The Message, then the system disconnect us
The schools and the prisons neglect us, so we step up
Self-knowledge is the weapon, we gotta protect us
Beyond our differences, our culture connects us
It's never black or white, it's not that simple
Would you replace yourselves (Cells) in the jails you put me into
They should all be alive, be alive and thriving
It's not good enough to only be surviving
If you've never heard a mother cry for the loss of her son
Then you won't understand where I'm coming from
Why why why is it like this
The state of our country is crisis
I'd rather be the change than see it change like this
Hey bruh, I need you to help me fight this
Why why why is it like this
The state of our country is crisis
I'd rather be the change than see it change like this
Hey sis, I need you to help me fight this
I got loyalty, royalty and stable employment
Can you afford to live and still live to enjoy it
Do you own the land or do you live to toil
Broken whips on broken backs, beaten until spoiled
This strange fruit, shackled and still moving
Songs of the chain gang and civil rights movement
They hung Danye from nooses, police still shootin
We know it never mattered what neighborhood you in
Queer and trans womxn are here for the revolution
Black men have been in prison with no restitution
Freed people have been scarred from these executions
They look at 45, as America's retribution
But they never gone see, you or me as human
Shit, we were written as 3/5ths in the constitution
Some say that unity is the solution
But maybe it's dissolution or evolution
Why why why is it like this
The state of our country is crisis
I'd rather be the change than see it change like this
Hey bruh, I need you to help me fight this
Why why why is it like this
The state of our country is crisis
I'd rather be the change than see it change like this
Hey sis, I need you to help me fight this