[Intro]
Uh, yeah, hey
[Verse 1]
I remember being younger with bigger dreams
A simple, clean, young teen never on the scene
Hoping for better for all of his friends and family
Content with what he had and never needed many things
But that's in the past where it shall remain
I'm getting older thinking back on all the finer things
Just an adolescent with no passion for the cream
Feet on a Persian carpet, thinking we had everything
Fast forward, Mama struggling and my Pops too
"Pick up the paper, we need paper, get a job too!"
I fall through and peeped our fate while I walked through
Thinking we ain't got shit, I saw the whole truth
Picked up the paper, crossing shit off while I checked the Times
Heading to class with head full of beats to pass the time
Banging the pen against my desk, I'm bumping to the vibe
Took a flick of the pen on pad and began to rhyme
[Chorus]
Wish I could've known then what I know now
Wish I could've gone back and turned it all around
Wish I was the man when I was a kid
Wished for better things for all the lives we live
Wish I never let a moment go to waste
Wish I could've changed around my older ways
Wish that I could live to see them better days
Wish that I could live to see them better days
[Verse 2]
I'm growing older and understanding my past more
Thinking back on how my parents used to laugh more
When business was good and they thought that we was past poor
And never wondered how long this would last for
Hardships and the pain
Paying a fortune on tuition where they enlisting my name
Telling me dearly I gotta make a name
So in the future, when I'm older, I'll be set in my ways
But damn, this ain't even what I'm drawn to
Writing these lyrics in my bedroom, thinking what I'm gonna do
How you out here visioning that you a King
When you don't even got a fuckin' clue of how to make a pawn move?
I gotta get it, but not just for me
I'm using verses for exercise, I'm feeling fatigue
Tryna prove that I've always been in another league
When the game locking us down, so how the fuck we feeling free?
[Chorus]
Wish I could've known then what I know now
Wish I could've gone back and turned it all around
Wish I was the man when I was a kid
Wished for better things for all the lives we live
Wish I never let a moment go to waste
Wish I could've changed around my older ways
Wish that I could live to see them better days
Wish that I could live to see them better days
[Verse 3]
I'm rapping for all of my fallen peers
For everyone who lived shorter in years
Like my cousin Amir, who only ended up
Living his last moment in fear, with a gun to his ear
I broke down when they broke the news
Seventeen, got me contemplating breaking rules
I'm yelling, "God if this the type of shit you gonna do
I just hope your help is noticed when I'm making moves"
'Cause I've been sick in the head
Whether from my Dad reminiscing, living with dread
Or my Mom's hopeful wish of when we seeing more bread
Had me fucked up for two months
Seeing my Grandfather in a hospital bed
Had the cards dealt against me, I don't play with a bluff
I just aim to make a change from nearly having it rough
I know I gotta stay tough, so I can have my hand in everything
Without even thinking that we ain't have enough
[Chorus]
Wish I could've known then what I know now
Wish I could've gone back and turned it all around
Wish I was the man when I was a kid
Wished for better things for all the lives we live
Wish I never let a moment go to waste
Wish I could've changed around my older ways
Wish that I could live to see them better days
Wish that I could live to see them better days
