I remember LA streets
Cruisin' down Sunset in the haze
Back when life was so sweet
Golden days living through a craze

Music played through the night
We were young felt so right

Those years were gold
Bright and bold
Now stories told
Hearts grown cold

We had a better time (yeah better time!)
When the world was free (world was free)
Now they’ve crossed the line (crossed the line)
What do we see? (do we see)
A city lost in misery (misery)

Neon signs and wild dreams
We were kings we ruled the scene
Now it’s not what it seems
Lost the spark the soul the sheen

People now chase empty gold
Trade their hearts lose their hold

Those years were gold
Bright and bold
Now stories told
Hearts grown cold

We had a better time (yeah better time!)
When the world was free (world was free)
Now they’ve crossed the line (crossed the line)
What do we see? (do we see)
A city lost in misery (misery)

Yearning for the
Golden days

Those years were gold
Bright and bold
Now stories told
Hearts grown cold

Back then the city had a pulse
a rhythm and a beat
Fast cars big dreams
livin' life on repeat
From the Walk of Fame
to the Venice Beach sands
Every corner every block
magic in our hands
Skateboards on the boulevard
neon lights aglow
Fashion trends music bends
the energy would flow
We were rebels in the night
no chains could hold us back
Now it's shadows of the past
memories we lack
Chasing paper losing soul
where did passion go?
Grit and glory now just stories
lost in hollow glow
Once a city full of life
now it's just a ghost
Echoes of the laughter
it's the past we miss the most

We had a better time (yeah better time!)
When the world was free (world was free)
Now they’ve crossed the line (crossed the line)
What do we see? (do we see)
A city lost in misery (misery)

We had a better time (yeah better time!)
When the world was free (world was free)
Now they’ve crossed the line (crossed the line)
What do we see? (do we see)
A city lost in misery (misery)

I was on the block
With my people every day
Tryna get a dollar in a hundred different ways
Tell 'em I was hot
I just had to get away
And they tell me
"Brother
What about the old good days?"

I was on the block
With my people every day
Tryna get a dollar in a hundred different ways
Tell 'em I was hot
I just had to get away
And they tell me
"Brother
What about the old good days?"

They want that old me back
Now that version in the past
When I was a young kid
I just wanted me a bag

On the corner with my people
In the middle of the night
Everybody moving careful
Just trying to make it right

Man I been hot
I been on my own thing
Riding with a Taurus
I was on some horoscope thing

All my people winning
Man we don't ever forfeit
Me and my people never moving on no weak stuff

I'm in this place with my woadies
I'm in this place with my homies
I'm in this place with the people
That really been down
And the ones that really been knowing me

I'm in this place with the people
That said they would ride for me
And the ones that would've stood with me

I'm in this place with the people
That told me I couldn't do it
But now I be doing me

I'm on a different type time
Girl you know I been on my grind
Tryna move all of my people up out the hood
Get 'em out of the bind

I know that all of my people got demons
But that's why I keep all my angels around
I told all my people
"If you hold me down
Then I'ma hold you down"

I was on the block
With my people every day
Tryna get a dollar in a hundred different ways
Tell 'em I was hot
I just had to get away
And they tell me
"Brother
What about the old good days?"

I was on the block
With my people every day
Tryna get a dollar in a hundred different ways
Tell 'em I was hot
I just had to get away
And they tell me
"Brother
What about the old good days?"

I was on the block
I was on the block
Tell 'em I was hot
And they tell me
"Brother
What about the old good days?"

I was on the block
Tell 'em I was hot
And they tell me
"Brother
What about the old good days?"

Uuuh
Aaaa
I had the chalk I had the board
Thought I knew what I was fighting for

I mapped it out like a perfect line
Variables dancing in my mind
Tried to graph where you might be
But love don’t fit no geometry

Slopes and curves they lied to me
No formula for what you see
You’re that value off the grid
And I solved what no one ever did

Every X I tried to crack
Led me closer no way back
Thought I had it all misread
But you were waiting up ahead

You don’t know how many Xs I had to break
To get one inch closer to Y (uh-huh)
I carried numbers like they were names
Till the moment you met my eye (ooooh)
It’s a mess of signs and endless tries
But now your logic redefines (yeaaah)
You don’t know how many Xs I had to face
Just to solve for a single Y

(Uuh uuh — that single Y)
(Aaah all those Xs I tried)

Circle back erase the trace
You’re the answer that now holds its place
I tried dividing all the pain
But you were constant in the rain

Was it sine or just a sign?
You curved in at the perfect time
I drew a heart inside the square
And this time you were really there

I factored in the nights alone
Calculated love unknown
But this equation found its truth
When all the numbers pointed to you

I reduced and simplified
You multiplied what’s deep inside
Left the questions in the dust
Now the formula is us

You don’t know how many Xs I had to break
To find the one and only Y (yeah yeah)
I carried numbers like they were names
But you gave meaning to the why (no no)
It’s a mess of signs and endless tries
Now it all aligns no need to lie (uh-huh)
You don’t know how many Xs I had to face
Just to solve for a single Y

(Uuh that final Y)
(Aaaah no more Xs I…)

Maybe you were undefined
In the limits of my mind
An asymptote I chased in vain
Till you stood right in the frame

You don’t know how many Xs I had to break
To stand here holding onto Y
I carried numbers like they were weights
But now the answer meets the sky
The signs were loud the tries were wild
But now I see the reason why
You don’t know how many Xs I had to face
Just to know that Y was you

(Uuh you’re my Y)
(Aaaah it’s always been you)

So I drop the pen the work is done
You were the proof the only one
No more math no more try
You’re my answer — you’re my Y

Bus is late but the sun is out
Someone’s laughing way too loud
Corner shop knows my face
Same old song same old place

Shoelace broke still on time
Found a coin lost my mind
Nothing special nothing deep
But today’s been good to me

Radio plays that beat again
Head goes left feet say “amen”
I wasn’t looking for a sign
But the street feels right in time

Life’s doing fine yeah look around
Sticky tables familiar sounds
Not a movie not a plan
Just a good day where I stand

Life’s doing fine no big parade
Just walking slow no rush today
If this is all I’m cool with that
Yeah I like it just like that

Coffee spills laugh it off
Wrong turn but I don’t stop
Shoes too tight shirt’s too thin
Still smiling when I walk in

Someone hums the tune I know
Traffic moves then says hello
Nothing changed still feels new
Guess the trick is how you view

No winning streak no finish line
Just wasting time and feeling fine
If this moment’s all I get
I’m not mad at it yet

Life’s doing fine yeah look around
Bent street signs old beat-up towns
Not a headline not a scam
Just a good day where I stand

Life’s doing fine no big parade
Late night talks cheap lemonade
If this is all I’m cool with that
Yeah I like it just like that

Maybe tomorrow’s loud and rough
But today’s already enough
No promises no advice
Just breathing in a decent life

Life’s doing fine hear that horn
Someone dancing someone bored
Not a dream not a trap
Just a moment and I’ll clap

Life’s doing fine I’ll say it twice
Not perfect but it’s nice
If this is all I’m cool with that
Yeah I love it just like that

Just like that
Yeah just like that

Your walls are gonna cry
They know it better than I do
I'm still scared to die
When I'm dancing without you

Maybe it's all in my head
Maybe I'll get out of bed
If you call
And I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage

And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage
And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage
And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage
And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage

And I know it's only temporary
But it's not in the way
It's not in the way that you want it
So we won't talk about it
We don't talk about it

And I know it's only temporary
But it's not in the way
It's not in the way that you want it
So we won't talk about it
We don't talk about it

Maybe it's all in my head
Maybe I'll get out of bed
If you call
And I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage

And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage
And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage
And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage
And if you call
I'll go dancing through my kitchen like it's a stage

Got a beat in my chest it’s a runaway train
Every move you make pulls me back again
I’m caught in your tempo can’t break away
But I don’t wanna leave I’m here to stay

Turn it up let it spin
Take my hands pull me in
No rules just the sound
We’ll burn this floor to the ground

Step into my rhythm don’t you slow it down
Oh-oh keep it moving now
We’re a spark in the night we don’t need a crown
Step into my rhythm and we’ll shut it down
Yeah shut it down down down

Your eyes talk loud like a midnight call
Don’t you dare let the moment fall
My heartbeat’s playing in 4/4 time
And you’re the reason for every line

Turn it up let it spin
Take my hands pull me in
No rules just the sound
We’ll burn this floor to the ground

Step into my rhythm don’t you slow it down
Oh-oh keep it moving now
We’re a spark in the night we don’t need a crown
Step into my rhythm and we’ll shut it down
Oh we shut it down down down

One step two step keep the groove tight
We’re gonna make this our favorite night
No going back no turning around
We own the beat we own the sound

Step into my rhythm don’t you slow it down
Oh-oh keep it moving now
We’re a spark in the night we don’t need a crown
Step into my rhythm and we’ll shut it down
Yeah yeah yeah — shut it down

Step into my rhythm… oh-oh-oh

You caught my eye
On that ten forty-nine
Right when the train doors
Closed me in

And in my mind
Was "Landslide"
The song my mother made
My dad dance with me to

You're
A song left unwritten
And just in case
I thought I'd say
I hope when the time comes
And that the heartache comes
This brings you back to me
At that moment
When you were caught

Bet you never thought you'd see me here

Ever again
With unbrushed hair and notes of the day
The way you stared
My trench coat brown
My eyes
I hope you remember them
I hope you find me somehow

Because
Darling
You're
A chapter left undone
And just in case
I thought I'd say
I hope when the storm hits
And the weeping winds
Take you back to me
At that moment
When you were nerve-struck
When you were awe-struck

Hands in the dirt I plant the start
Sweat on my face I build my part
Told I couldn't still I tried
Raised a roof where they saw sky

One step two steps — fall reset
Still I walk haven’t stopped yet

Built from the ground not handed down
I earn the weight I wear the crown
No shortcut no easy sound
I rise I run I hold my ground

Bricks of doubt I laid aside
Pushed through walls they said would slide
Nights were cold the path unclear
But I stayed loud when no one near

One step two steps — fall reset
Still I walk haven’t stopped yet

Built from the ground not handed down
I earn the weight I wear the crown
No shortcut no easy sound
I rise I run I hold my ground

This isn't luck it’s stubborn flame
Each scar I carry knows my name

Built from the ground not handed down
I earn the weight I wear the crown
Breathe in deep hear the sound
Of me becoming round by round

Got my feet up sun on my face
Life is a ride let’s pick up the pace
With a strum of the guitar the world feels right
Let’s dance on the clouds from morning till night

LAUGHING LOUD we chase the sun
Rolling on waves oh we’re gonna have fun!
With a trombone blast we’re breaking the rules
Together we shine just a couple of fools!

Running through fields with laughter in tow
A violin sings as we steal the show
Time is a game we play it so bright
With every note played we’re taking flight

LAUGHING LOUD we chase the sun
Rolling on waves oh we’re gonna have fun!
With a trombone blast we’re breaking the rules
Together we shine just a couple of fools!

LAUGHING LOUD we chase the sun
Rolling on waves oh we’re gonna have fun!
With a trombone blast we’re breaking the rules
Together we shine just a couple of fools!

Eight-oh-five by Saint Michel
Kola had a cake box under one arm
one red shoe in the other hand
He said “My aunt turns sixty”

I heard “aunt” “cake” and “Saturday”
and supplied the missing cinema myself
At Idris’ barbershop I said
“Maybe the man is getting married”

Idris did not repeat my sentence
He gave it catering witnesses
and a cousin arriving from Marseille
with three phones and firm opinions

By nine-fifteen the taxi rank knew the venue
By ten the tailor had chosen gold
By eleven Auntie Binta had named two children
Kola was still looking for candles

Who told you?
No be me
Who confirmed it?
Nobody

Radio trottoir radio trottoir
one little “maybe” took a motorbike
Dem don carry am go dem don add pepper
by lunch that man was married twice

At one he had married the mayor’s niece
At two he had bought a flat in Lisbon
At three he had left her for a singer
whose name nobody could pronounce

At four the church committee wanted answers
about a generator no one had lost
At five I tried to stop the story
That became “He knows more than he is saying”

At six my mother called me:
“Wear something decent
Apparently you are giving the speech
And bring your own chair”

I found Kola beside the pharmacy
still carrying the same red shoe
The cake was for Aunt Mariam
The shoe had fallen from her shopping bag

He stared at me for seven quiet seconds
then asked who I planned to marry
I laughed exactly once
That was my second mistake

Who told you?
No be me
Who confirmed it?
Nobody

Radio trottoir radio trottoir
one little “maybe” took a motorbike
Dem don carry am go dem don add pepper
by lunch that man was married twice

I went home to hide from the bulletin
My neighbour had prepared rice
My sister said a woman named Celeste
had accepted me on my behalf

Who is Celeste? Nobody knows
She may be a dentist
She may be in Dakar
She may have started at Idris’ second chair

My mother likes her already
She says Celeste sounds responsible
There are now two cakes in the kitchen
Neither one belongs to Kola

Wetin happen?
Ask the barber
Who start am?
No be me
Where proof dey?
It left by taxi
Can you stop am?
You fit try

Radio trottoir radio trottoir
no antenna no editor no brakes
By sunset Kola ran the ministry
by midnight I was cutting a second cake

Radio trottoir radio trottoir
every correction opens another branch
I only said “Maybe he is getting married”
Now Celeste is discussing curtains with my aunt

Kola brought the candles
My mother served the rice
Idris arrived with invitations

No be me