City of Angels

You think you made it out — but shadows stretch longer than

your

past. This for the

ones who learned to breathe with danger at their back.

{atmospheric pad, tape-stop effect} Walking through the shadows where the sunlight fades…

Rearview locked, paranoia raised.

City of Angels with a halo made of smoke,

We just fight to keep a heartbeat holding on,

Cold wind cutting through a heavy soul.

{driving dembow-influenced beat, sidechain bass} Got a thousand different demons banging on

the walls of my brain,

Every corner that I turn feel exactly the same.

They talk about success like it's waiting on a shelf — But

when you're born in the trenches,

you don't trust nobody else.

Seen homies turn to ghosts chasing fake pride,

Got a target on my back and a cross on my side.

Cruiser creeping slow, shining beams in my face,

Trying to catch a young G slipping out of place.

Trying to cage my spirit,

turn my life into a stat,

Print another Black body under bold-font facts.

So I grip the wheel tight,

let the engine roar light,

Navigating every danger on a Compton flight.

{rhythmic trap hi-hats, dry punchy flow} Walking through the shadows where the

sunlight fades…

Rearview locked, paranoia raised.

City of Angels with a halo made of smoke,

We just fight to keep a heartbeat holding on,

Cold wind cutting through a heavy soul.

{soaring brass synth layers} Everybody got an angle,

everybody got a fee — You pay for your mistakes and your

bad company. They love when you're bleeding,

hate when you rise,

In a world full of snakes,

truth's a health compromise.

Hazard to my health,

heater tucked in the glove,

Not a whole lot of mercy,

not a whole lot of love.

Made it out the hood but it's stitched in my mind,

Leaving trauma on the pavement every mile behind.

So don't preach to me about glory or gold — If you

buy your way out,

you still selling your soul.

{sub-bass dips, subtle electric guitar chords}

Hear 'em whisper in the dark —

Waiting for the slip,

waiting for the fall.

Let it breathe…

let the night swallow it all.

(let it breathe...) {filtered beat,

auto-tuned delay throws} Yeah…

It ain't palm trees and chrome every night — Sometimes it's just

surviving 'til the light.

Keep your head low.

Keep your circle tight.

(surviving...) {fading drums, warm Rhodes piano chords}