Sojourner

[Intro: J. Cole] Aba-ba-ba-ba-ba-ba Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah Mhmm, mhmm, mhmm [Chorus: J. Cole] Oh, I swam for miles, only to realize the current Is fightin' against me and I'm so tired, I'm floatin' now Oh, from here on out, I've got to realize the power Of learnin' to let go, and just let God Enjoy the ride [Verse 1: J. Cole] Yeah, look Born into pain, alcoholic veins Over-analytical brain a product of the shame And runnin' from a past, that's checkered like the game Somewhere 'long the way somebody snatched my peace and main Maybe that's the reason I spent decades seekin' fame And fortune hopin' that a proper portion would contain The sadness in my eyes, remember when I came In this music business, all their questions was insane "Why you never smile in your pictures?" I refrain From givin' you the answer 'cause that answer wasn't plain Enough for me to see 'cause at the time I knew my name But didn't know myself, and so I dealt with shit the same As a fugitive, but running from the truth and shit I shoot the shit with niggas, but they never knew the shit that's hidden deep Within the crevices like ever since I was a child Seen my mama with the pistol pointed at her dome and how In the fuck do you expect for me to ever be the best lil' me That I can be, when trauma's deep inside of me, like I.V. fluid Pumpin' through the blood of wifey, while she's givin' birth To my child, I know my thoughts are runnin' wild Bear with my style, this just a trial run Just heard these kids don't know 'bout Malcolm And I'm sort of heartbroken 'cause the elders lost hope in our youth And here I sit dead in the middle, not a little boy no more But not quite old yet, wakin' up in cold sweats Scared that I'm too disconnected from the kids' perspective The world ain't got no patience for some shit that's introspective So where in the fuck that leave me? Irrelevant, I guess Went from Heaven-sent to hella bent, intelligent but stressed, damn [Chorus: J. Cole] Oh, I swam for miles, only to realize the current Is fightin' against me and I'm so tired, I'm floatin' now Oh, from here on out, I've got to realize the power Of learnin' to let go, and just let God Enjoy the ride [Bridge: Rapsody] One more time Swim good, enjoy the ride (Yeah) Every day I rise, thank God that I am alive (Yeah) Yeah, swim good, enjoy the ride (Yeah) Every day I rise, thank God that I am alive (Uh) [Verse 2: Rapsody] Permanent vacation for forever Some things you gotta leave behind, some people just like weather And seasons, for that reason, I know I'll always have a leg up Weatherman forecast me dead last, think I'm just another nigga Maybe, I'll be the next Black Beatle like Swae Lee Yeah, I know my worth, these colonizers got to pay me Yeah, I had to go first 'cause the rest would never last I had to show the positives for those that couldn't add Lookin' at the ads, they only love us if our ass Out and so I'm out, I got an Audi and it's bad I said that line 'cause niggas only respect you if you brag It don't work on me the same, don't give a fuck 'bout what you have Everybody claimin' boss, none of you niggas got no staff It don't measure up the same, what's a quarter to a half? Of a whole lot of problems, nigga, who taught you to add? Where I'm from, we don't recognize that it's good math If you don't teach the ones that's comin' up to multiply their cash Think for themselves, think beyond sales Everything with worth don't come with some whistles and some bells The ones I gotta leave behind, the ones you gotta bail Meek Mill, I'm workin' hard, ain't too far from a meek mil' To keep it real, the realest niggas I know always kept it real And I'ma tell you, Black-on-Black murder been whack 9th, turn me up so they can hear me in the back Yeah, and that's pretty hard for me But you see hopeful niggas and where they all ought to be Scared to grow wings, Birdman with a bunch of Carter beef That's old news, look, nigga, you talkin' to modern me Smarter, we had better conversations sittin' with barbers Puttin' hearts and heads in niggas who don't think ahead, who taught you? School y'all, school y'all, welcome to the schoolyard Teach you how to make moves without needin' a U-HAUL I was on you all when I was growin' up Now it's you all that's all on these nuts I'm ballin', havin' a ball and I got the balls to say it Who needs inspiration where you know when you can play it? Carolina to the heart, nobody here gon' play us The day that we expire, Carolina's where they'll lay us I woke up feelin' like Aaliyah, yeah, a million and one bucks Told these niggas I don't give a single million and one fuck, Rap [Chorus: J. Cole] Oh, I swam for miles, only to realize the current Is fightin' against me and I'm so tired, I'm floatin' now Oh, from here on out, I've got to realize the power Of learnin' to let go, and just let God Enjoy the ride