picking the chains

[Intro] Yeah... V Nasty... Black Sheep Records... They thought the bars was prison... Nah... The bars became the rhythm. [Verse 1] Same streets I was pacing, now they study every cadence, Used to stop and ask me questions, now they watching, losing patience. Calculated conversations, I was trapped inside the basement, Now I'm building every statement like I'm pouring new foundations. One of these days I had to level up my ways, Seen the sun through iron bars while I was drowning in the gray. Locked inside a cell but my vision never stayed, Mind free, body trapped—that's a different kind of cage. Feet planted in the fire while my eyes searched for the light, Every demon threw a punch, I threw a purpose back to fight. Pressure made a diamond, every scar became a stripe, Now they see a king surviving where they swore I'd lose my life. Broke away from poverty, I picked the lock and popped the latch, Now every verse another receipt proving I can match. Every setback built momentum, every loss became a stack, If pain was an investment, I'm collecting all it back. [Hook] I picked the chains... Now they can't chain my name. Turned a prison into purpose, Turned the hurt into the flame. Rain on my shoulders, Still I never changed. Built a future with these bars... Yeah... I picked the chains. [Verse 2] Picking your brain while I'm picking every pattern, Every line a loaded lesson, every verse another chapter. Haters throwing dirt—I turned the soil into harvest, Now they looking at the throne asking how I got the farthest. Dirty white T, busted shoes, empty pockets, Now my words hit harder than a forty in your socket. Never needed handouts, I just needed an option, Now I'm breaking every ceiling while they still are just watching. You can judge my past, but you can't rewrite the facts, Every bridge I ever burned lit the road behind my back. They was betting I'd collapse—I was learning how to stack, Now the underdog's the headline and I'm never looking back. [Bridge] Pain don't disappear... It transforms. The same scars they laughed at... Become the same story they applaud. [Final Hook] I picked the chains... Now the chains can't hold me. Every scar another lesson, Every bar another trophy. From the gutter to the booth, Still speaking for the broke. If you made it through the fire... Then you already know.