Crown of the Concrete

Intro

Crown of the concrete, crown of the concrete (ayy, yuh)

Skrrt, put the city on my shoulders, ha, let's go

Crown of the concrete, crown of the concrete (yeah, yeah)

Verse

I grew up where the streetlights teach you how to read the skyline,

Playwright of paychecks, I scribble grind lines in the grime, prime time

Old sneakers, new tactics, moving like a chesskid — checkmate, right?

Pocket full of promises and pennies that learn to weigh a night

Mama said keep your head down, keep your pride loud, keep your friends tight,

So I built a castle out of curbs, fitted windows from a broken flight

My crown ain't gold — it's welded steel and scar-marks from midnight fights,

It clicks when I nod, concrete teeth, I grin into the harsh light

I hustle syllables into currency, barter truth for a torch, bright,

Turn rust to rhythm, broken glass into a bar that shines bright

Neighbors sell stories from their stoop, I collect them like receipts,

Flip them into verses, now the block sings when I breathe, (breathe) breathe

I learned loyalty from dogs with no leashes and no pedigrees,

Respect cost more than rent, yeah it costs your knees, costs your ease

They called me underdog until I learned to howl in stereo,

Now every alley's anthem hums my name like a radio (yuh)

Skrrt through deadlines, swerve the sirens, make my destiny outta dead ends,

I put my hand to the pavement and the pavement handed me a legend

Chorus

I wear the crown of the concrete, crown of the concrete (I wear it, yeah)

I wear the crown of the concrete, crown of the concrete (I wear it, ayy)

I wear the crown of the concrete, crown of the concrete (hold up)

I wear the crown of the concrete, crown of the concrete (let's go)

Verse

Check the arc on my scars — they map anniversaries of fight nights,

Names carved in the margins, every loss taught me to write right

I move like a rumor in the rain: quick, sticky, unforgettable,

My ledger's full of lessons, every scar's a skill, indelible

I don't crown myself with false crowns, this pressure made the circlet real,

Pressure bends the metal, then it shapes the man with steadier steel

Enemies become mirrors — they glare and teach me how to stand still

Friends become anchors — sometimes that weight keeps you real

I tip my hat to the hustlers who never sleep, who never fold,

To the kids on the stoop with cold hands and big plans for the gold

We sell our yesterdays for a tomorrow that's built from tonight,

Blueprints drawn on napkins, lit cigarettes as streetlights (ha)

Every alley's a pulpit, preacher's cadence in a sneaker's squeak,

I preach to my reflection, got sermons in my technique

They wanted crowns handed down, we forged ours from scrap and creed,

Turned scrap into standards, hunger into appetite and feed

So if you see me in the skyline, know the skyline named me first,

I carried all the rooftops till my lungs knew how to thirst

Now I