From the Bricks They Threw

Lyrics

[Verse 1] You said the rent went up; Ma put the kettle on Bills on the table, red circles where the check was gone I learned a hard truth from the landlord’s crooked grin: A locked door don’t care how good your heart’s been My man got a record for a bag he didn’t pack Judge read the page, never once looked back So we write our own names where the margins got torn Make a meal from the little, make a map from the scorn [Chorus] We ain’t saints, we ain’t safe, we still stand our ground Hands full of truth when the whole damn room shuts down If the rules got a price, let the whole thing be known We can build something better from the bricks they threw [Verse 2] Corner store clerk knows the kids by their faces Knows who needs a sandwich, who’s dodging cold cases Politicians shake hands, then they vanish by June While the bus sighs smoke under a billboard moon I got anger in my chest, but I aim it with care ’Cause a fist makes a headline, not a way out of there Fuck a pretty campaign with a slogan and grin Show me paid school staff and a roof that don’t cave in [Chorus] We ain’t saints, we ain’t safe, we still stand our ground Hands full of truth when the whole damn room shuts down If the rules got a price, let the whole thing be known We can build something better from the bricks they threw [Bridge] For the ones who kept the lights on late For the ones told “wait” at the courthouse gate For the ones still here with a plan and a scar You’re more than the worst thing they say you are [Verse 3] No savior’s coming down the avenue tonight Just neighbors with a shovel and a porch light A teacher with a secondhand coat and a stack Of books that say the future ain’t a closed track So I speak plain, let the polished folks flinch This shit gets real when the poor can’t inch Toward a life with some rest, with a key of their own We don’t need their permission to call this home [Final Chorus] We ain’t saints, we ain’t safe, we still stand our ground Hands full of truth when the whole damn room shuts down If the rules got a price, let the whole thing be known We can build something better from the bricks they threw We can build something better from the bricks they threw [Outro] From the bricks they threw We made a road through