I wanna be as free as the spirits of those who left

I'm talkin' Malcolm, Coltrane, my man Yusef

Through death grew conception, new breath and resurrection

For moms, new steps in her direction, in the right way

Told inside is where the fight lay

And everything a nigga do may not be what he might say

Chicago nights stay, stay on the mind

But I write many lives and lay on these lines

Wave the signs of the times

Many say the grind's on the mind

Shorties blunted-eyed and everyone wonderin' where I'm

Bush pushing lies, killers immortalized

We got arms but won't reach for the skies

Waiting for the Lord to rise

I look into my daughter's eyes

And realize I'ma learn through her

The Messiah, might even return through her

If I'ma do it, I gotta change the world through her

Furs and a Benz, Gramps wantin 'em

Demons and old friends, Pops they hauntin' him

The chosen one from the land of the frozen sun

When drunk nights get remembered more than sober ones

Walk like warriors, we were never told to run

Explored the world to return to where my soul begun

Never looking back or too far in front of me

The present is a gift, and I just wanna be